Another Daughter of Aphrodite
by EvilCheesecake437
Summary: Hi, I'm Natalia McLean, sister to Piper McLean. My life all started to go crazy when my sister's boyfriend, Jason, suddenly got amnesia, and we were attacked by storm spirits. Then a blonde chick, Annabeth, sent us to Camp Half-Blood where I found out who my mother was. At least I got suffer all of this with my best bud! Leo/OC
1. My Sister's Boyfriend has Amnesia

**I'm on a roll! I should get an award or... a cup of kool-aid! Yeah, a big cup of fruit punch kool-aid. Now this is about Natalia, Piper's sister, who falls for our favorite fire boy: Leo. Who else agrees that Leo is absolutely adorable? Just sayin'...**

**Now I'm going to try and be a better writer than I was before, because I actually had someone PM me about how to make my writing like an actual book. So here I go! Note my sarcasm and a little enthusiasm...**

**I do not own anything. This is all Rick Riordan, with a little bit of me. But mostly Rick Riordan. **

**Chapter 1: My Sister's Boyfriend has Amnesia**

**Chapter Song: Who Are You Really- Mikky Ekko**

_So you're feeling tied up to a sense of control, And make decisions that you think are your own. You are a stranger here, why have you come? Why have you come, lift me higher, let me look at the sun,Look at the sun and once I hear them clearly, say: Who, who are you really? And where, where are you going? I've got nothing left to prove, Cause I've got nothing left to lose. See me bare my teeth for you. Who, who are you?_

* * *

"So Leo," I started looking at my best friend. "What'd you do this time?"

He grinned. "You're just gonna find out."

"All right, cupcakes, listen up!" Coach Hedge shouted. That nickname cupcake is gonna get on my nerves...

"Stand up, Coach Hedge!" One of the students called out, making some of us laugh. Coach was shorter than me, and Leo. That's saying something.

"I heard that!" Coach started to scan around for the culprit, but eventually looked away, after he cleared his throat. "We'll arrive in five minutes! Stay with your partner. Don't lose you worksheet. And if any of you precious little cupcakes causes any trouble on this trip, I will personally send you back to campus the hard way."

Yeah that hard way would be getting a step stool to reach our height, and then try to scold us. Coach Hedge is not that threatening, if you haven't noticed. But instead he picked up a baseball bat. Still not scary.

"Can he talk to us that way?" My sister's boyfriend, Jason, asked.

"Always does," Piper told him. "This is the Wilderness School. 'Where kids are the animals.'"

Ha, good one big sis. See, me and Piper are twins, we've got the same dad, who is a famous film star who doesn't have any time for his daughters, and we've got the same mom, who I never met. Ever.

We have the same chocolate hair, but her's was a little but uneven and choppy. Since I didn't want to steal her style, heh, I kept mine a little long a wavy. Mine right now was put up in a pony tail.

"This is some kind of mistake," I heard Jason say. "I'm not supposed to be here."

I exchanged glances with Leo, before turning around in the seat, and laughed. "Yeah right," I rolled my eyes.

"We've all been framed!" Leo said dramatically. "I didn't run away six times. Piper and Nat didn't steal that BMW."

I hit his arm. "Leo!"

Piper blushed. "We didn't steal that car."

"Oh I forgot, Nat. What was your guy's story? You 'talked' the dealer into lending it to you?" He raised his eyebrows, using quotation marks.

Leo looked at Jason. "Anyway I hope you've got your worksheet, 'cause I used mine for spit wads days ago. Why are you looking me like that? Did Nat draw on my face?"

I raised my hands up in defense. "Not this time, Leo."

"I don't know you two," Jason simply said.

"Leo Valdez, Natalia McLean!" I heard Coach Hedge yell from the front. "Problem back there?"

My best friend winked at Jason, then grinned at me. "Watch this." He turned back around in his seat. "Sorry Coach! I was having trouble hearing you. Could you use your megaphone, please?"

Coach Hedge unclipped his megaphone from his belt and started to give directions, but when his voice came out, it sounded like Darth Vader. This made all the kids laugh. I noticed the coach trying to talk again but this time, the megaphone blared: "The cow says moo!"

And this also made the kids burst out laughing. Coach slammed the megaphone down. Aw poor megaphone, what it do to you, besides make you sound like you belong in a Star Wars movie. "Valdez!" The coach yelled out.

Leo held his hand for a fist pump, which I returned greatly. He is an absolute wiz with tools.

Me and my sister held back a laugh. "My god, Leo. How did you do that?"

I noticed him slip a tiny Phillips head screwdriver from his sleeve. "I'm a special boy."

"Now you finally admit it, congrats!" I said, making Leo glare at me.

"Guys seriously," I turned back to Jason. "What am I doing here? Where are we going?"

Piper knit her eyebrows. "Jason, are you joking?"

"No! I have no idea-"

Leo cut him off. "Aw, yeah he's joking. He's trying to get me back for that shaving cream on the Jell-O thing, aren't you?"

Jason had an _no emotion_ look on his face. Wait, my sister's boyfriend has no idea who we are? Or even Leo for that matter? How could someone forget Leo?

"No, I think he's serious." She tried to hold his hand but he pulled it away.

"I'm sorry, I don't-I can't-"

"That's it!" Now what, coach? "The back row has just volunteered to clean up after lunch!"

The rest of the kids cheered.

"There's a shocker," Leo muttered.

I nodded. "Wopdie freakin' doo."

Once the bus stopped it looked like we stopped in the middle of nowhere. Literally. I've never even seen a museum this far out.

"So, a crash course for the amnesiac," Leo started in a helpful tone. "We go to the 'Wilderness School'" He used air quotes, making me roll my eyes. "Which means we're 'bad kids'. Your family, or the court, or whoever decided you were too much trouble, so they shipped you off-"

I cut him off. "To this lovely prison! Opps, I mean 'boarding school' in Armpit, Nevada."

"Thank you, Natalia." He said, sounding fancy using my full name. "Anyways you learn valuable nature skills like running ten miles a day through the cacti and weaving daisies into hates! And for a special treat we go on 'educational' field trips with Coach Hedge, who keeps order with a baseball bat. Is it all coming back to you now?" Gee I hope so.

"No." Jason said. Damn, well we tried.

Leo rolled his eyes. "You're really gonna play this out, huh? Okay, so the four of us started here together this semester. We're totally tight. You do everything I say and give me you desert and do my chores-"

"Leo!" Me and my sister snapped.

"Fine ignore that last part. But we _are_ friends."

I grinned at my sister. "Well, big sis over here is a little bit more than your friend-"

"Natalia!" My sister's face began to redden. I noticed Jason's was too. Oh-la-la! "He's got amnesia or something. We've got to tell somebody."

Leo scoffed. "Who, Coach Hedge?"

"He'd try to fix Jason by hitting him in the head with his baseball." I said, and probably that would happen.

"Leo, Nat, Jason needs help." Piper insisted. And this is why they are- _were_- or still are going out. She cares about him. _Alot_. "He's got a concussion or-"

"Yo, Piper." Oh hell fudge monkeys no. "Don't talk to these bottom-feeders. You're my partner remember." He stepped between Leo, me, and Jason, knocked Leo back.

"One of those bottom-feeders happens to be her sister." I muttered, helping Leo up. He nodded, and thanked me.

"Go away Dylan." My sister grumbled. "I didn't ask to work with you."

"Ah, that;s no way to be. This is your lucky day!" I gave my sister a look, _Want me to punch him for you?_

_No, but make sure to call 911_. She sent me a look back as Dylan hooked his arm through hers and dragged her to the front of the museum.

"Well," I sighed. "I should go find my partner. Have fun."

I walked towards my other friend, Jenny, who had short pixe-cut blonde hair, and dark blue eyes, that were covered by glasses. She's a little tall for her age, and skinnier for her age. Jenny got in to the 'Wilderness School' because her parents didn't have time for her or something like that.

"Hey Jen," I greeted.

She waved, and pushed up her glasses. "Hello Natalia. I hope this museum is interesting. Coach gave me a brochure, here."

Jenny handed me a dull colored paper, with old pictures. I tried to read it, but all the letters got jumbled up and I couldn't read it. See I have dyslexia, and ADHD, and I rarely told people about it. Leo and Piper have it too, so they get to suffer with me, and they're the only ones that know.

I handed Jenny the paper back. "Wow, sounds interesting."

She shoved the paper in her jacket pocket, before we followed the rest of the class around the museum. When Coach Hedge tried to lecture us with his megaphone, he sounded like the Sith Lord, or it said things like, "The pig says oink."

I really gotta give props to Leo for that one. I pulled out a couple pencils and started to drum on the wall next to me. No one seemed to notice, but I felt kinda bored.

"Hey, McLeans," I turned around to who called my last name. "Does your tribe run this place? Do you two get in free if you do a rain dance?"

By instinct I walked over to my sister, once she started to clench her fists. I did too, and I almost broke the pencils.

"Our dad's Cherokee, not Hualapai." Piper informed.

"'Course you'd need a few brain cells to know the difference, Isabel. Maybe it's because all that makeup, it's weighing down you're head." I heard a couple _oohs_. Isabel is bitch. Plan and simple.

Her eyes widened in mock surprise. "Oh sorry! Was your_ mom_ in this tribe? Oh, that's right. You never knew your mom."

I almost charged at the bitch, but Piper put a hand on my arm. These bitches apparently need stitches! I notice Leo about to come over too, and he had a concerned look on his face.

I gave him an, _I'm fine_ look. He knows me and Piper like to face our battles by ourselves or with each other. But everytime I do get in a fight, Leo's always there. He's like super-glued to me. I don't really mind it though, I mean he's the only guy best friend I have. Me and Jason are cool, but he's closer to Piper than me.

"Enough back there!" Coach Hedge barked. "Set a good example or I'll break out my baseball bat!"

Woah that is such a good threat!

The _bitch clique _walked away but when they brushed passed us I heard comments like, "Good to be back on the rez?" or, "Dad's probably too drunk to work. That's why they turned klepto."

Piper looked at me. _Not another fight okay?_

_Fine,_ I glared at the clique of bitches. _But if they insult us again, it's going down._

My sister smiled. _I'll let you have that one, if they say something again._

Since me and Piper are so close, and we're twins it's like we can read each other's minds and facial expressions. Cool, right? It's like we're Fred and George, from Harry Potter. Except we're not gingers. Although it would be awesome to be one! Am I right? A ginger ninja? Leo would get my joke...

"All right, cupcakes," Coach Hedge announced. What is it with him and cupcakes? "You are about to see the Grand Canyon. Try not to break it. The skywalk can hold the weight of seventy jumbo jets, so you featherweights should be safe out there. If possible, try to avoid pushing each other over the edge, as that would cause me extra paperwork."

Is he calling us fat? Well maybe since the _bitch clique _is wearing that much make-up they could break it...

Coach opened the doors, and there was the Grand Canyon. Over the edge there was a horseshoe-shaped walkway make of glass, so you could see everything. I walked back over to Jenny who was in awe. I looked up a noticed huge storm clouds that were coming closer. Me and Jen went over a looked over the edge.

"Breathtaking," Jenny muttered. Even with the thunder rumbling above us, it is quite, breathtaking. I brought out my almost broken pencils and started to drum on the railings.

_Tip, tap, tipety, tap, tap!_

"All right, cupcakes!" Again with the cupcakes. He looked up at the storm clouds and frowned. "We may have to cut this short, so get to work! Remember complete sentences!"

Jenny pulled out the paper and readjusted her glasses. "Describe two examples of erosion. Okay though would be-"

"Glacial action, or landslide." I suddenly answered.

"Yeah, good job Natalia." She praised. Then some of the kids started to scream, and that's when I noticed the miniature hurricane. I turned around to fast, lost my balance, and almost fell off the railing, but someone pulled me back. With my hair whipping around I could see who it was: Leo.

I smiled. "Thanks, Leo!" I yelled over the wind.

"No problem Nat!"

"Go, go, go!" Coach Hedge yelled. Jenny was pulling on my jacket towards the entrance by my sister. Her and Dylan were holding the doors open. I went to help my sister, who was completely calm, as I pushed Jenny inside.

We lost the grip on the doors and they slammed shut, with all the kids inside. Me and my sister tried tugging, pulling, anything to open the doors.

"Dylan, help!" Piper shouted over the cold wind. Even when I'm wearing a jacket, jeans, boots, and a long-sleeved shirt, I'm still freezing!

I looked over to Dylan, who had a stupid grin on his face. "Sorry, McLeans. I'm done helping."

He flicked his wrist and me, and Piper went flying backwards into the doors and sliding to the skywalk.

"Piper!" I heard Jason shout.

"Natalia!" Aw, Leo cares about me.

I gave my sister an alarming look. _You okay, big sis?_

_I like back pain but yeah, I'm fine._

Then my gaze went back towards Dylan, who had two people next him that looked like ghosts, with smokey eyes and eyes that looked like lightning. Two bent up clubs rolled towards us and we got a tight grip on it.

_Ready to be violent?_ Piper smirked, as we pretended to be still in a daze.

_Born that way!_ I smirked back. We both stood up and started to swing at the ghost thingys. But every time I swung it right through them. Okay, what the freak are these things?!

Then Jason was next to us and he took out the ghost thing with one swipe, with a pretty blade, and it disintegrated. And so did the other one. It disintegrated into gold powder.

"Impossible! Who _are_ you, half-blood?" Dylan screamed. Half-what now?

My sister had the hugest stun look on her face, that she dropped her club. "Jason, how...?"

I kept a tight grip on mine, because it's the only weapon I have. Then, out of nowhere, Coach Hedge calm in screaming, "Spirits, fear me!" and flexing his small arms. He's a... a... goat thing? A pony? What else is gonna happen today?!

"Curse it, boy!" He snapped. "Didn't you leave some for me? I like a challenge."

"Yo, Coach Supergoat," I turned over to see Leo, breathing hard, and his hands were bleeding. "Whatever you are- I just fell down the freaking Grand Canyon! Stop asking for challenges!"

Leo. _Leo._ He dropped down the Grand Canyon. The friggin' Grand Canyon. I'm dreaming right?

"You have no idea how many enemies you've awakened, half-bloods. My mistress will destroy _all_ demigods. This war you _cannot_ win." Dylan hissed. What is he now, a hurricane monster? Or a... storm spirit! Where did that come from?

Above is rain poured down, and hold of swirling vortex of black and silver opened in the clouds. I clutched Piper's hand as we made it around Dylan so we could tackle him from behind.

"The mistress calls me back!" You have a mistress. That's not weird at all. "And you, demigod, will come with me!"

Me and Piper lunged at Dylan, or the storm spirit thingy, and I grabbed a hold of his shoulder, while Piper got a hold of his head. Then a huge gust of wind blew both of us back into the railing. But my big sis, was hanging over the sides.

"Piper!" I screamed trying to reach her.

"Help!" Piper yelled. "Somebody!"

I got a hold of her fingers and grasped them tight. "Hold on, tight!" I had thrown most of my body over the railing to try and pull her back but then both of our fingers slipped, and down went my sister, screaming. Me? I fell back with a _Thud!_ were I couldn't breath. And this is even worse considering I have slight asthma. Great.

I tried moving but my limbs wouldn't work. At all. Was I in shock? Probably. I tried moving again towards the railing. Piper. _Pipes._ Gotta save sister. First priority. Save big sis. Why can't I still move?

Move. _MOVE!_

"Natalia!" I heard a voice say. Hey look, it looks like Piper's shoes. Wait...Piper? Am I dreaming?

My head shot up. "Sissy?"

"Oh god," She helped me up, and pulled me into a hug. "You okay?"

"Me! You're the one who just dropped down the Grand friggin' Canyon! How did you...?"

She looked at Jason. "I don't know exactly how but..."

Then I started to look around. Leo. LEO. I ran towards him with all the strength and speed I had. Oh god, please don't be dead. Please. Don't. Be. Dead.

I turned him over and brushed his curly hair out of his face. "Leo?"

"Stupid... ugly... goat," He muttered. I rolled my eyes, _Same Leo_.

"Where did he go?" My sister asked.

Leo pointed his finger straight up. "Never came down. Please tell me he didn't actually save my life."

"Twice," Jason told him.

My best bud groaned. "What happened? The tornado guy, the gold sword... I hit my head. That's it, right? I'm hallucinating?"

Jason walked over to the sword Leo was talking about, flipped it, and the sword shrank back into a coin, and landed in his palm.

"Yep," I agreed with Leo. "Definitely hallucinating."

"Jason," Piper shivered. "Those things-"

"_Venti_," He corrected. "Storm spirits."

"Okay. You acted like... like you'd seen them before. Who _are_ you?"

Jason shoke his head. "That's what I've been trying to tell you. I don't know."

"And you thought it was a joke," I whispered to Leo.

"It seemed like a good thing to call it at the time." He whispered back.

I noticed above us that the storm dissipated, and the other kids had horrifying looks on their face. The security guards were working on the locks, but it seemed they didn't have any luck.

"Coach Hedge said he had to protect four people." Jason said, which I don't remember coach saying. "I think he meant us."

Piper shuddered. "And that thing Dylan turned into... God, I can't believe it was _hitting _on me. He called us... what, _demigods_?"

Leo had his head on my lap, staring up in sky, while I just started messing with his hair. "Don't know what _demi _means, but I'm not feeling too godly. You guys feeling godly?"

I turned my head as I heard a snapping sounds, and the cracks in the skywalk began to widen. Oh snap. _Literally_.

"We need to get off this things. Maybe if we-" Leo and I cut Jason off.

"Natalia, please tell me you see the flying horses?" He asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, I do. Are we really hallucinating?"

"Probably."

But no. We weren't. There in the sky was a chariot, pulled by a pair of winged animals. Is this my Little Pony? I mean considering what Coach Hedge turned into it could be...

"Reinforcements," Jason told us. "Hedge told me an extraction squad was coming for us."

I helped Leo to his feet, but I kept my arm around him. "Extraction squad?" Leo echoed. "That sounds painful."

"And where are they extracting us _to_?" My big sis asked.

The chariot in the sky landed at the end of the skywalk and two teenagers stood in the chariot. One was a tall blonde girl, and the other was a bulky dude, with a shaved head. They both wore the same orange T-shirt, and shields across their backs.

Then the blonde chick leaped off the chariot, pulled a knife, and ran towards us. Leo, who had his arm around me, and I had his arm around him, tightened his grip. I felt little butterflies in my stomach with Leo being this close to me. I kept in a blush, but I noticed a small blush appear on Leo's cheeks too.

"Where is he?" She demanded. I noticed that she had gray eyes. Never seen that type of eye color before.

"Where's who?" Jason asked.

Blondie frowned, then turned to us. "What about Gleeson? Where is your protector, Gleeson Hedge?" Ha, Gleeson.

I shot a look at my sister. _Who is this chick?_

She shrugged. _I've got no idea..._

Beside me, Leo cleared his throat. "He got take by some... tornado things."

"_Venti,_" Jason corrected again. "Storm spirits."

Blondie arched her eye brow. "You mean _anemoi thuellai_? That's the Greek term. Who are you, and what happened?"

Jason, who right now seemed to be the leader of the group who actually had a weapon and not a broken, bent up club, explained everything to blondie, and muscle guy. I looked over a bit and noticed he had a tattoo of a rainbow on his biceps, who came over.

I held in a laugh, and that took a lot. You don't see most guys walking around with a rainbow on their bicep, but given everything that's been going on, I'll let it slide.

"No, no, no! She _told_ me he would be here. She told me if I came here, I'd find the answer." Blondie told us.

"Annabeth," Rainbow dude grunted. "Check it out." He pointed a Jason's feet. I noticed he was missing his left shoe. I'm still surprised I haven't lost my shoes yet.

"The guy with on shoe, he's the answer." Rainbow dude said.

"No, Butch." Blondie insisted. "He can't be. I was tricked." Then she glared at the sky. Is she having a glaring contest with the sky? I wanna join! "What do you want from me? What have you down with him?" She screamed at the sky.

Uh... this girl got issues, if she's screaming at the sky.

"Annabeth," Rainbow guy looked at her. "We gotta leave. Let's get these four to camo and figure it out there. Those storm spirits might come back."

Blondie looked back at Jason, before giving him a resentful look. "Fine, we'll settle this later." She walked away towards the chariot.

Piper shoke her head. "What's _her _problem? What's going on?"

"Seriously," Leo agreed, loosening his grip on me a bit.

"We have to get you out of here," Rainbow- I mean Butch said. "I'll explain on the way."

"I'm not going anywhere with _her._" Jason gestured towards blondie. "She looks like she wants to kill me."

"Annabeth's okay. You gotta cut her some slack. She had a vision telling her to come here, to find a guy with one shoe. That was supposed to be the answer to her problem." Butch told us.

"What problem?" I asked.

"She's been looking for one of our campers, who's been missing for three days." Butch explained. "She's going out of her minds with worry. She hoped he'd be here."

"Who?" Jason asked.

Butch sighed. "Her boyfriend. A guy named Percy Jackson."

Alright, that's it. I'm hallucinating. Let's recap: My sister's boyfriend has amnesia, we got attacked by tornado thingys, or _Venti_, Coach Hedge turned into a goat, Piper almost fell off the Grand Canyon and was saved by Jason somehow..., and some blondie, with a guy who has a rainbow tattoo is taking us to a camp. Considering blondie has a dagger, and with everything that's happened today, this _camp_ is gonna be pretty special.

* * *

**So how'd you like the first chappie? Pretty long, I know but I didn't want to cut it off at the good parts. Anyways, favorite, follow, review, and don't forget to smile!**

**Oh and I actual made an outfit, on Polyvore! Still on my friend's account, (Bob, if you know who I'm talking about) and I can use it!**

**Another thing, for Natalia I picture her either as Selena Gomez, or Vanessa Hudgens. Just wanted to put that out there... but who would you guys picture as Piper? I know she's of Cherokee descent, but I didn't really find anyone that looked like her or close to her. **

**TEAM LEO! BAD BOY SUPREME! And if you can't tell already, I love Leo Valdez, as much as Homer Simpson loves donuts! Hmm donuts...**

**M'kay. Bye!**


	2. We Crash Into Camp Half-Blood

**Hey guys! So how you like the story so far? I just couldn't help writing a Leo/OC story because my friend was getting rid of the books at a yard sale, and I bought them, read them at least a thousand times and fell in love with the Bad Boy Supreme. Fuck team Edward and Jacob, I'm team Leo. True story.**

**Thanks for those who reviewed, favorite, and followed! I guess you guys are Team Leo too?**

**Disclaimer: I obviously don't own the Lost Hero, or Piper, or the Bad Boy Supreme... But I do own Natalia!**

**Chapter 2: We Crash Into Camp Half-Blood**

**Chapter Song: Dangerous Times- Wildlife**

_I walked toward the window, And saw something orange and bright. I lifted up the blind and I was, Blinded by the light. Down in some abandoned car Somebody I once knew, Summoned all the pain, And shouted out your name. They said: This is our second coming. These are dangerous times, They are hard to understand. If you don't feel it in your heart, You'll never hold it in your hands._

* * *

So, as crazy as it might sound, we got in the chariot. Right now, I should be screaming, "Stranger Danger!" but no. I followed my sister to the back of the chariot, and plopped next to Leo.

In front of us rainbow dude, Butch, handled the reins, and the blondie with the dagger, Annabeth, adjusted a navigation device of some sorts. Once we rose over the Grand Canyon, we headed east, and it started to get friggin' cold.

The worst part about it was that there were no seatbelts, and the back was completely wide open. I snuggled next to Leo, who was slightly tapping his fingers on the chariot.

"You cold, Nat?" He asked.

"Pshh, naw. I'm freezing actual." With that, he wrapped his arm around my shoulder, and pulled me into his chest, which was surprisingly warm. Like fireplace warm.

"This is so cool!" Leo said, after spitting a pegasus feather out of his mouth. "Where are we going?"

"A safe place." Blondie said. "The _only_ safe place for kids like us. Camp Half-Blood."

"Half-Blood?" Piper and I repeated. I have always hated that word, like when people called us half Cherokee, half white, and it was always never a compliment. "Is that some kind of bad joke?"

"She means we're demigods," Jason explained. "Half god, half mortal."

Blondie looked back at Jason. "You seem to know a lot, Jason. But, yes, demigods. My mom is Athena, goddess of wisdom. Butch here is the son of Iris, the rainbow goddess."

I bit my lip to hold back a laugh, but Leo choked. "Your mom is the rainbow goddess?"

"Got a problem with that?" Okay Butch, is actually intimidating.

"No, no," Leo raised his hands up in defense. "Rainbows. Very macho."

I gave Leo a fist pump for that. Rainbows are very macho. I think...

"Butch is our best equestrian," Blondie said. "He gets along great with the pegasi."

"Rainbows, ponies," I muttered.

"I'm gonna toss both of you off this chariot," Butch warned.

Yep. I'm pretty sure I'm in the land of my Little Pony.

"Demigods," Piper said, going back to the previous thing Jason said. "You mean you think you're... you think we're-"

Suddenly lightning flashed, and the chariot shuddered.

"Left wheel's on fire!" Jason yelled.

Me and Leo both looked over and saw the the wheel was burning. And it was burning quick. I noticed my sister was looked back, so I followed her gaze. There were dark shapes forming in the clouds, and more storm spirits were spiraling towards the chariot. But they looked like horses.

See, I'm in the world on my Little Pony! I knew it!

"Why are they-" My sister started but Annabeth cut her off. I guess I should call her by her name, at not blondie 'cause she might hurt me with that dagger.

"_Anemoi_ come in different shapes." She explained. "Sometimes human, sometimes stallions, depending on how chaotic they are. Hold on. This is going to get rough."

Macho rainbow dude, flicked the reins, and the pegasi put on a burst of speed, making the chariot blur. I closed my eyes, and snuggled closer to Leo, who held me tight in his arms.

When I opened my eyes were were totally in a different place. There was ocean that stretched out to the left, and snow-covered fields, roads, and forests spread to the right. Right above is was a green valley, full of little cluster of buildings.

Just when I thought we were gonna be completely fine, the chariot dropped out of the sky, and the wheels came off.

We're dead. Majorly dead. Screwed.

I noticed Butch and Annabeth trying to maintain control, but the pegasi looked exhausted.

"The lake!" Annabeth yelled. "Aim for the lake!"

Huh. I remember my dad telling me and Piper something like, hitting the water from up high is similar to hitting cement.

So yeah. We're screwed.

_BOOM._

When I hit the water I had no idea it was gonna be this cold. I couldn't figure which was up and which way was down. I opened my eyes, and saw girls with long black and glowing yellow eyes who grabbed me by the shoulders and hauled me up.

I was tossed onto the shore, and I was gasping for air. Oh precious air, how I missed you! Someone held me up, and blasted me with big bronze leaf blower. Wow, this must happen a lot. But at least my clothes are dry. Someone else handed me a blanket and walked over to my friends.

Piper looked over at me. _You okay?_

_Fantastic._ I love sarcasm.

I noticed the kids surrounding us all had orange T-shirts like Annabeth's. Why can't they be green? Or blue? Or red?

"Annabeth!" Some guy with a boy and quiver pushed through the crowd. "I said you could _borrow_ the chariot, not destroy it!"

"Will, I'm sorry," Annabeth sighed. "I'll get it fixed, I promise."

Arrow guy, Will, looked at me, Leo, Piper, and Jason. "These are the ones? Way older than thirteen. Why haven't they been claimed already?"

"Claimed?" Leo asked.

"Any sign of Percy?" WIll asked, ignoring Leo's question. Rude.

"No," Blondie admitted.

I guess this guy must be pretty important, not like president important, but like, "Whoever stole my last donut is going die."

Another girl stepped forward. She was tall, Asian, dark hair, lots of jewelry, and oh look, makeup! She glanced and Leo, fixed her eyes on Jason, like he might be worthy of her attention, and then curled her lip at me and Piper.

Oh yeah, another girl to go into the _bitch clique_.

"Well," the girl said, "I hope they're worth the trouble."

Beside me, Leo snorted. "Gee, thanks. What are we. your new pets?"

"No kidding," Jason said. "How about some answers before you start judging us-like, what is this place, why are we here, how long do we have to stay?"

Those were actually all my questions...

"Jason," Annabeth said. "I promise we'll answer your questions. An Drew"- she frowned at the girl who belonged in the _bitch clique_-"all demigods are worth saving. But I'll admit, the trip didn't accomplish what I hoped."

"Hey," My sister said. "we didn't ask to be brought here."

Drew sniffed. "And nobody _wants_ you, hon. Does your hair always look like a dead badger?"

Oh hellll naw!

I stepped forward about ready to smack the bitch for talking 'bout my sister, but Piper put her hand in front of me. "Nat, stop."

_Please let me hit her!_ I screamed/glared.

_It's fine,_ Piper smiled. _I promise._

"We need to make our new arrivals feel welcome," Cough, DREW, cough. "We'll assign them each a guide, give them a tour of camp. hopefully by the campfire tonight, they'll be claimed.

I groaned. "Would somebody please tell me what _claimed_ means?"

Then there was collective gasp. What'd I do? Do you guys not use the word please around here? People in front of me had there faces bathed with strange red light, like someone had lit a torch behind me. When I turned around, I think I forgot how to breath.

Above Leo's head was a floating, blazing holographic image of a fiery hammer.

"That," Annabeth said. "is claiming."

"What'd I do?" Leo backed up towards the lake, and then glanced up. "Is my hair on fire?" He tried ducking but the symbol followed him.

"This can't be good," Rainbow macho guy muttered. "The curse-"

"Butch, shut up," Damn blondie. "Leo, you've been claimed-"

Jason interrupted. "By a god, that's the symbol of Vulcan, isn't it?"

Mostly everyone eyes- oh the guy in the back turned to him now everyone's eyes were on him.

"Jason," Blondie said carefully, "how did you know that?"

"I'm not sure." Was his answer.

"Vulcan?" Leo demanded. "I don't even LIKE _Star Trek._ What are you talking about?"

"Vulcan is the Roman name for Hepheastus," Annabeth explained, "the god of blacksmiths and fire."

No wonder Leo is always warm.

The fiery hammer above Leo's head faded but he kept swatting the air, making sure it didn't come back. "The god of _what_? Who?"

Blondie turned to arrow dude. "Will, would you take Leo, give him a tour? Introduce him to his bunk-mates in Cabin Nine."

Will nodded. "Sure, Annabeth."

"What's Cabin Nine?" Leo asked. "And I'm not a Vulcan!"

"Come on, Mr. Spock, I'll explain everything." Will put a hand on his shoulder and started to steer him off towards what I'm guessing was the cabins. I waved at Leo, but he sent a glance over his shoulder and met my eyes. For a moment I thought it was just a regular glance, but everyone seemed to disappear as I paid attention to those brown, welcoming, eyes.

I blinked a couple times wondering what just happened, but I smiled.

Will laughed. "Come on, Romeo."

Leo glared at him, but smiled at me before he went with Will.

"Hold out you arm." I turned around to Jason, Annabeth, and Piper. I looked at what Annabeth was talking about on Jason's arm: There on his arm was a tattoo with a dozen straight lines similar to a bar code and over that was an eagle with the letters spqr.

"I've never seen marks like this," Annabeth said, her eyes in awe and shock. "Where did you get them?"

Jason shoke his head. "I'm getting really tired of saying this, but I don't know."

Other people behind me were trying to push forward just to look at Jason's tattoo.

I looked at Jason's arm and placed my hand on it. "It looks like they were burned into your skin."

"They were," Jason looked at me, and winced for a small second. I removed my hand thinking I did it. "I mean... I think so. I don't remember."

Everyone went dead silent.

"He needs to go to straight to Chiron," Annabeth said. "Drew, would you-"

"Absolutely." I rolled my eye sand Drew laced her arm through Jason's. "This way, sweetie. I'll introduce you to our director. He's... an _interesting _guy." I noticed Drew flash a smug look at my sister, before she led him towards a huge blue house on the hill.

Most of the crowd was gone and it was only me, Piper, and Annabeth.

"Who's Chiron?" I questioned.

"Is Jason in some kind of trouble?" My sister asked.

Blondie hesitated. "Good question, Piper, Natalia. Come on, I'll give you two the tour. We need to talk."

"Is this going to be a long talk?" I asked. "Because my feet are starting to hurt."

Annabeth turned to me but then her eyes widened, again. "Natalia, where did you get that necklace?"

I looked down to my neck to see my necklace, that I completely forgot I was wearing, and took it off. "I found it one day when I was rummaging through my dad's stuff. He never noticed it was gone so, I kept it. Why?"

She took it from my hand a looked at the pendant. "It just looked... familiar."

Annabeth handed me the necklace back, and I put around my neck. "Onward with the tour!"

The tour wasn't as fun as I thought. I noticed as we walked through the camp, talking about magic archery, pegasus riding, the lava wall, and fighting monsters, she showed no excitement. I knew if I was a tour guide I would be like, "Yeah, we fight monsters. Football? We don't got time for that!"

I wondered if I would be good at fighting a monster or even using a bow. I might be able to take a really, tiny dagger and take out a rabid squirrel, but that's about it. Considering how big this camp is I wonder who runs it? It must be a guy with alot of patience.

We actually got to climb to the top of the hill, which was an amazing view. I call dibs! This could be my spot when I want to be alone. I have the same spot at my house, well... if it's still there. When I was little there was this little pantry that had a secret door that lead to my room. Only me and Piper knew about it. So every time I wasn't in my room, I was reading in the pantry. Sounds weird huh?

Piper nudged my arm, and I followed her gaze to the bigger cabins. One glowed gold, another silver, one had grass on the roof, and one was bright red with barbed wire trenches. And then the on the creeped me out was the one that was black with fiery green torches in the front.

"The valley is protected from mortal eyes," Annabeth explained. "As you can see, the weather is controlled, too. Each cabin represents a Greek god-a place for that god's children to live."

"So," I started. "You're saying Mom was a goddess."

Annabeth nodded. "You two are taking this awfully calmly."

"With everything that's happened today, my brain is used to taking in new, _weird_, information."

Our mom left when we were little, and the strangest thing was that there wasn't any pictures, and Dad would never talk about her.

I noticed Piper took a shaky breath. "I guess after this morning, it's a little easier to believe. Like Nat said. So, who's our mom?"

"We should know soon," Annabeth told us. "You two are what-fifteen? Gods are supposed to claim you when you're thirteen. That was the deal."

"The deal?" Me and Piper questioned.

"They made a promise last summer... well long story... but they promised not to ignore their demigod children anymore, to claim them by the time they turn thirteen. Sometimes it takes a little longer, but you saw how fast Leo was claimed once he got here. Should happen soon. Tonight at the campfire, I bet we'll get a sign."

Oh, what if our Mom was like Athena or Artemis? I could use a bow, or be like super wise. Snap, I forgot Artemis is like a virgin goddess or something like that.

"Why thirteen?" My sister asked.

"The older you get, the more monsters notice you, try to kill you." Annabeth explained. "'Round thirteen is usually when it starts. That's why we send protectors into the schools to find you guys, get you to camp before it's too late."

"You mean like Coach Hedge?"

Blondie nodded. "He's- he was a satyr: half man, half goat. Satyrs work for camp, finding demigods, protecting them, bringing them in when the time is right."

So, our coach was a goat man? We'll considering how much he eats, I wouldn't be surprised.

"What happened to him?" Piper asked. "When we went up into the clouds, did her... is he gone for good?"

Annabeth's expression was pain-looking. "Hard to say. Storm spirits... difficult to battle. Even our best weapons, Celestial bronze, will pass right through them unless you can catch them by surprise."

"Jason's sword just turned them to dust," Piper said.

"He was lucky, then. If you hit a monster just right, you can dissolve them, send their essence back to Tartarus."

That's why our clubs didn't work that well...

I turned my head in confusion. "What's Tartarus?"

"A huge abyss in the Underworld, where the worst monsters come from." Blondie explained. "Kind of like a bottomless pit of evil. Anyway, once monsters dissolve, it usually takes months, even years before they can re-form again. But since this storm spirit Dylan got away-well, I don't know why he'd keep Hedge alive. Hedge was a protector, though. He knew the risks. Satyrs don't have mortal souls. He'll be reincarnated as a tree or a flower or something."

I tried to imagine Coach Hedge as a daisy with a baseball bat, threatening bees saying something like,"Stay away from my pollen!"

I leaned against my sister's shoulder, and looked down at the cabins. I'm probably going to have some siblings. Hopefully they're nice.

"It'll be okay," Annabeth promised. "You have friends here. We've all been through a lot of weird stuff. We know what you guys are going through."

Sure you do.

"We've been kicked out of five different schools for the past five years." Piper said. "Our dad's running out of places to put us."

"Only five?" What's the limit then? "Piper, we've all been labeled troublemakers. I ran away from home when I was seven."

"Seriously?"

"Oh yeah. Most of us are diagnosed with attention deficit disorder or dyslexia or both-"

"Mine and Leo's ADHD." I said.

"Right," Annabeth nodded. "It's because we're hardwired for battle. Restless, impulsive-we don't fit in with regular kids. You should hear how much troble Percy-" Her face darkened. "Anyway, demigods get a bad rep. How'd you get in trouble?"

I laughed nervously. "See what had happened was-"

Piper cut me off. "We sorta steal stuff... but not really steal..."

"Is your family poor?"

We shoke our heads. "Not even. We did it... actually I don't know why. For attention I guess. Our Dad never had time for us unless we got in trouble."

Blondie nodded. "I can relate. But you said you two didn't really steal? What do you mean?"

"Nobody never believes us but, The police, teachers- even the people we took stuff from: they're so embarrassed, they'll deny what happened." I started to explain.

Piper caught my trail. "But the truth is, we didn't steal anything. We just asked for the stuff and they give it to us. Even a BMW convertible. We just asked, and the dealer said, 'Sure. Take it.' Later he realized what he'd done, I guess. Then the police came after us."

I waited for Annabeth to call us a liar or something like that but she just nodded.

"Interesting. If your guy's dad were the god, I'd day you're a child of Hermes, god of thieves. He can be pretty convincing. But your dad is mortal..."

"Very," Piper and I agreed.

Blondie shoke her head. "I don't know then. With luck, you two will be claimed by your mom tonight."

Please let my mom be cool, please let my mom be cool.

"Come on," Annabeth said. "There's something else I need to check."

We followed blondie to a cave at the top of the hill. I started to watch were I stepped when I noticed bones and hold swords. In the entrance there were a lot of torches which was covered in a velvet curtain that was embroided with snakes.

"What's in there?" I asked.

Annabeth poked her head inside, sighed, then closed the curtains. "Nothing, right now. A friend's place. I've been expecting her for a few days, but nothing so far."

"So, your friend lives in a cave?" Piper questioned.

It looked like blondie was almost going to smile. "Actually, her family has a luxury condo in Queens, and she goes to a finishing school in Connecticut. But when she's here at camp, yeah, she lives in the cave. She's our oracle, tells the future. I was hoping she could help me-"

"Find Percy," I guessed.

All the energy drained from Annabeth's face, and she sat down on a rock. Her expression was so full of pain, it hurt me just to see it.

I had to look away. I couldn't look any longer. My eyes trailed to a pine tree with something glittering on it's lowest branch, like a fuzzy bath mat. Then I noticed the base of the tree, it had reptilian scales, clawed feet and a snakelike head with yellow eyes and smoking nostrils.

Is that what I think it is?

I poked my sister's shoulder. _Is that the Golden Fleece?_

Piper looked to where I was looking, and then back at me. _Ah huh. _

"That's- a d-dragon." I stammered. "Is that the _actual _Golden Fleece?"

I looked over at Annabeth who nodded, but I could tell she wasn't listening. "Sorry. A little tired."

"You look ready to drop," Piper said. "How long have you been searching for your boyfriend?"

"Three days, six hours, and about twelve minutes."

_I would do the same if Leo was missing._ What we did that come from? I mean, yeah, Leo is my best friend, but would I really go to edge of the earth to find Leo?

_Yes, you would. _Okay who is the voice in my head? Usually my conscience is the god, well to me he is, Morgan Freeman. Where is Morgan Freeman?!

"And you've got no idea what happened to him?" Piper asked.

Annabeth shoke her head miserably. "We were so excited because we both started winter break early. We met up at camp on Tuesday, figured we had three weeks together. It was going to be great. Then after the campfire, he- he kissed me good night, went back to his cabin, and in the morning, he was gone. We searched the whole camp. We contacted his mom. We've tried to reach him every way we know how. Nothing. He just disappeared."

"How long we're you guys together?" I asked her.

"Since August." Annabeth said. "August eighteenth."

"Almost exactly when I met Jason," Piper said, making me smirk at her. "But we've only been together a few weeks."

Annabeth winced. "Piper... about that. Maybe you should sit down. And Natalia maybe you should-"

Piper cut her off. "Whatever you have to say, Nat can hear too. She's my sister after all."

"Twin," I corrected.

Then when I thought Piper was going to smile, I noticed it looked like she was going to cry. "Look, I know Jason thought-he thought he just _appeared _at our school today. But that's not true. I've- we've know him for four months."

"Piper," Blondie said sadly. "It's the Mist."

"Missed... what?"

"M-i-s-t." Annabeth spelt out. "It's a kind of veil separating the mortal world from the magic world. Mortal minds-they can't process strange stuff like gods and monsters, so the Mist bends reality. It makes mortals see things in a way they _can_ understand-like their eyes might just skip over this valley completely, or they might look at that dragon and see a pile of cables."

Piper swallowed. "No. You said yourself I'm- we're not a regular mortals. We're demigods."

"Even demigods can be affected. I've seen it lots of times. Monsters infiltrate some place like a school, pass themselves off as a human, and everyone _thinks_ they remember that person. They believe he's always been around. The Mist can change memories, even create memories of things that never happened-"

"But Jason's not a monster!" My sister insisted. "He's a human guy, or demigod, or whatever you want to call him. My memories aren't fake. They're _so _real. The time we set Coach Hedge's pants on fire. The time Jason and I watched a meteor shower on the dorm roof and I finally got the stupid guy to kiss me..."

Piper went on about the whole semester at Wilderness School. I could tell those memories my sister and Jason shared, even the small ones me and Jason shared, weren't fake.

Annabeth pursed her lips. "Piper, your memories are a lot sharper than most. I'll admit that, and I don't know why that is. But if you know him so well-"

"I do!"

"Then where is he from?"

Uhm... I'm gonna pass this question to Piper. "He must have told me, but-"

"Did you ever notice his tattoo before today? Did he ever tell you anything about his parents, or his friends, or his last school?"

"I-I don't know, but-"

"Piper, what's his last name?"

That hit it. My sister broke down crying and I wrapped my arms around her.

"It's okay, Pipes." I soothed, patting her back.

"Hey," Annabeth said. "We'll figure it out. Jason's here now. Who knows? Maybe it'll work out with you guys for real."

Piper brushed a couple tears from her face. "You brought me up here so no one would see me blubbering, huh?"

Annabeth shrugged. "I figured it would be hard for you. I know what it's like to loose your boyfriend."

"Looks like I can't join the club, because I'm forever alone." I said, making both of them laugh.

"But I still can't believe... I _know_ we had something. And now it's just gone, like he doesn't even recognize me. If he really did just show up today, then why? How'd he get there? Why can't he remember anything?"

"Good questions," That's what were know for. "Hopefully Chiron can figure that out. But for now, we need to get you two settled. Ready to go back down?"

We both nodded. "Sure."

* * *

**I already wrote these chapters in advance so that's why I'm updating so fast... Anyways Nat's necklace is on my profile and it's really purdy. Hope you guys like the long chappies!**

**Also when do you think Leo and Nat should get together? Like around the end or when Festus crashes?**

**M'kay. Bye!**


	3. I Met the Red-Head Oracle

**Hiya! As I said before I had these chapters already written because I got bored over the summer and I wanted to at least finish one of my stories before I made this one. So this idea has been in the back of my head for a while.**

**And the reviews? I'm so happy I just can't stop smiling! I really wuv you guys!**

**Chapter 3: I Met the Red-Head Oracle**

**Chapter Song: Somwhere I Belong- Linkin Park**

_When this began, I had nothing to say. And I get lost in the nothingness inside of me, I was confused. And I let it all out to find, That I'm not the only person with these things in mind. Inside of me, But all that they can see the words revealed. Is the only real thing that I've got left to feel, Nothing to lose, Just stuck, hollow and alone. And the fault is my own, and the fault is my own._

* * *

I shoved my hands in my hoodie pockets as we walked by a group of campers playing basketball. They made every shot. Even three-pointers.

"Apollo's cabin," Annabeth told us. "Bunch of showoffs with missle weapons-arrows, basketballs."

I put my thumbs up enthusiastically. "Spectacular."

We walked past a fire pit- oh smores!- where two guys were hacking at each other with swords.

"Real blades?" My sister noted. "Isn't that dangerous?"

"That's sort of the point," Ha. Good one blonide, I think. "Uh sorry. Bad pun. That's my cabin over there. Number Six." She pointed to a gray building with an owl carved on the door. I noticed, through the open doorway, bookshelves, weapon displays, and one of those thing that they have in classrooms. What are they? Lemme think... SMART Boards! There we go. Two girls were drawing a map on there that looked like a battle diagram.

"Speaking of blades, come here." Annabeth lead us around to the side of the cabin to a big metal tool shed.

_This place looks like it's for gardening._ Piper glanced at me.

Once we started to look around I looked back at her. _It's not for gardening._

And I was right. The place was full of weapons from swords to spears to clubs like one Coach Hedge had.

"Every demigod needs a weapon," Annabeth said. "Hephaestus makes the best, but we have a pretty good selection, too. Athena's all about strategy-matching the right weapon to the right person. Let's see..."

No one should trust me with shiny, fragile, or even pointy objects. Because with my clumsy self I'll probably drop it one my toe, and impale it.

Blondie handed us a massive sword that weight a ton.

"No," The three of us said. Annabeth started to rummage farther into the shed and brought out something else.

"A shotgun?" Me and my sister both asked.

"Mossberg 500." Blondie corrected, and she checked the pump action. "Don't worry. It doesn't hurt humans. It's modified to shoot Celestial bronze, so it only kills monsters."

"Um, I don't think that's my style," Piper said.

I nodded. "Yeah, same."

"Mmm yeah," Blondie agreed. "Too flashy."

Annabeth put the shotgun back and started go through a rack of crossbow. I looked around myself and something caught my eye. There were was another one beside it, but they were totally different.

"What is that?" Piper asked, pointing to the one that was totally different.

"Are those knives?" I questioned.

Blondie picked up the one Piper was talking about blew off the dust, and then the one I was talking about which had more dust.

"I don't know, guys." She sounded uneasy. "I don't think you guys want these. Swords are usually better."

"You use a knife." I pointed to the on strapped to Annabeth's belt.

"Yeah but..." Blondie shrugged. "Well, take a look if you want."

I took the knife from her and looked at the sheath. It was nothing fancy. The sheath was thick, brown leather, making the brass handle stand out which had a place for your hands to fit in the middle. I unsheathed it, and the weapon was a curved silver blade.

"Wow," I breathed out.

"It suits you. Both of the knives do." Annabeth admitted. "Piper's blade is called parazonium. It was mostly ceremonial, carried by high-ranking officers in the Greek armies. It showed you were a person of power and wealth, but in a fight, it could protect you just fine. Natalia's blade is celestial bronze. So you could kill monsters-"

I cut her off. "Like Jason's blade,"

"I like it," Piper said. "Why do you think they're right?"

Annabeth exhaled. "Your blade, Piper, has a long history. Most people would be afraid to claim it. Its first owner... well, things didn't turn out too well for her. Her name was Helen."

My sister took that information in. "Wait, you mean _the_ Helen? Helen of Troy?"

Blondie nodded. "And Natalia's is called the Greek Falcata. This blade was so powerful that is was able to deliver and tremendous blow and could split both shield and helmet. So basically it's very powerful."

I should be trembling now, but I actual felt happy about this blade. "So these have been sitting in your toolshed?"

"We're surrounded by Ancient Greek stuff," Annabeth said. "This isn't a museum. Weapons like that- they're meant to be used. They're our heritage as demigods. That," She pointed to Piper's blade. "Was a wedding present from Menelaur, Helen's first husband. She named the dagger Katoptris."

"Meaning?" Piper asked.

"Mirror," Blondie explained. "Looking glass. Probably because that's the only thing Helen used it for. I don't think it's ever seen battle. And I'm pretty sure Falcata seen battle."

I smiled, then my sister dropped her blade.

"Piper?" I shouted going over to her instantly.

"Medic! I need some help over here!" Annabeth called out to the Apollo kids.

"No, it's-it's okay," Piper managed.

I gave her a look. "Are you sure?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I just..." Piper picked up the dagger, with what looked like trembling fingers. "I just got overwhelmed. So much happening today. But... I want to keep the dagger, if that's okay."

"Me too," I smiled.

Blondie waved off the Apollo kids who went back to their game. "Okay, if you're sure. You turned really pale, there. I thought you were having a seizure or something."

"I'm fine," My sister promised. "Besides it's Nat you have to worry about. She sometimes has these little asthma attacks. But they're rare. Is there... um, a phone at camp? Can I call our dad?"

"We aren't allowed phones," Blondie said. "Most demigods, if they use a cell phone, it's like sending up a signal, letting monsters know where you are. But... I've got one." She slipped it out of her pocket. "Kind of against the rules, but if it can be our secret..."

Piper took it gratefully. "Thanks,"

We walked away from Annabeth and faced what looked like an commons area.

"So, we calling the private line?" I asked in a low voice.

My sister sighed. "As always." She dialed the number and luckily someone answered.

"Mr. McLean's office."

"Jane," Piper said, gritting through her teeth. "Where's my dad?"

Our dad's assistant, Jane, went silent for a second. "Piper, I'm assuming Natalia is with you, I thought you two weren't supposed to call from school."

"Maybe we're not at school." I said. "Maybe we ran away in a forest to met woodland creatures and become Snow White."

"Mmm." No concern. At all. "Well, I'll him you two called."

"Where is he?" Piper questioned.

"Out."

I rolled my eyes. "You don't know do you?"

"When are you going to call the police, Jane? He could be in trouble. "Piper said, lowering her voice.

"Girls, we are not going to turn this into a media circus. I'm sure he's fine. He does take off occasionally. He always comes back."

"So it's true. You _don't _know-"

"I have to go, girls," Jane snapped. I wanna punch he through the phone right now. "Enjoy school."

The line went dead.

"Dammit," Me and Piper both cursed. We walked back to Annabeth and handed her the phone.

"No luck?" She asked.

Piper didn't answer, but I shoke my head. I could tell if Piper said something she would cry.

"Your last name is McLean? Sorry it's not my business. But that sounds really familiar."

"Common name." I shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess. What does your dad do?"

"He's got a degree in the arts," Piper said, almost as if it was automatic. "He's a Cherokee artist."

Technically that is true. But when most people think artist, they think _artist._ Like selling bobble-heads, wampum necklaces, Big Chief tablets, and lots of more souvenirs.

"Oh." Annabeth put the phone away. "You two feeling okay? Want to keep going?"

Both me and Piper fastened our new daggers to our belts. "Sure, we wanna see everything."

We walked most of the cabins and stopped at Cabin Eight, which was entirely silver and glowed like the moon.

"Artemis?" Piper and I both guessed.

"You know Greek mythology," Blondie said.

Piper nodded. "We did some reading when our dad was working on a project lest year."

"I thought he did Cherokee art."

Oh shiitake mushrooms. "Oh, right. But-you know, he does other stuff too."

Thankfully Annabeth didn't seem to make the connection. "Anyway," She continued. "Artemis is goddess of the moon, goddess of hunting. But no campers. Artemis was an eternal maiden, so she doesn't have any kids."

"Oh." That bummed me out. I mean I kinda knew before I just hopped I was wrong. Just imagine me, Natalia McLean firing an arrow. Badass.

"Well, there are the Hunters of Artemis," She told us. "They visit sometimes. They're not the children of Artemis, but they're her handmaidens-this band of immortal teenage girls who adventure together and hunt monsters and stuff."

Piper perked up. "That sounds cool."

"They get to be immortal?" I added.

"Unless they die in combat, or break their vows. Did I mention they have to swear off boys? No dating-ever. For eternity."

"Oh," Piper said. "Never mind."

No dating? At all? That's a big fat NO.

Annabeth laughed, and she lead us to the next cabin, Number Ten, which looked like a Barbie house with a pink door, potted carnations in the windows with lace curtains. Once we walked past the door I could already smell a whole lot of perfume.

"Gah, is that were supermodels go to die?" I asked.

Blondie smirked. "Aphrodite's cabin. Goddess of love. Drew is the head counselor."

"Figures," My sister grumbled.

"They're not all bad," Annabeth said. "The last head counselor we had was great."

"What happened to her?" Piper asked.

Annabeth's expression darkened. "We should keep moving."

"Question, where's Leo's cabin?" I asked, making Piper and blondie smirk. "What?"

"You and Leo?" Annabeth asked.

I nodded. "We've been best friends since me and Piper went off to Wilderness School."

"That's not what Annabeth meant, Nat. Do you like Leo?" Piper asked.

And of course I blushed. I couldn't stop it. "I'll find it myself," I grumbled.

I started to walk around, remembering Number Nine. Then I saw a cabin with a vault door of thick metal, and the walls were metal. Should I knock? Do I _knock_?

"Nat!" I heard when the doors opened. There was my favorite buddy, Leo. "How's it goin'?"

"Well aside from learning I'm a demigod, I'm good." He chuckled.

"Have you found out who you're godly parent is yet?"

I shoke my head. "Nope. I was really hoping somewhere along the lines of Athena or something."

Leo grinned. "Not Aphrodite?"

"That cabin looks likes it's a place where supermodels die. I'm good. So what about you?"

"Me?" He shrugged. "I now know why I was able to make cool things from objects. Like Coach Hedge's megaphone."

We both ended up laughing at that.

"Well," I gave him a small hug. "I should get back to my sister, make sure she hasn't gotten into any trouble."

"By-" He stopped his sentence when our eyes met, like they did when Leo was claimed. I couldn't look away. It was like my eyes were permanently glued to his. All I'm gonna say is that, remember Twilight? And the wolves Imprinting thing? That's how it felt like. Like I was suddenly pulled towards him, and wherever he went I went. I wanted to be near him 24/7.

I had to _literally_ pull myself away. "B-bye. Leo."

He waved, like he just felt what I felt. "Bye, N-Natalia. S-see you at the c-campfire."

Do demigods Imprint? Do girls even Imprint? Guys? First of all, do people even Imprint? So many questions...

I nodded, and walked where my sister was just at. Then I looked over and saw Annabeth and my sister at a cabin, that looked like a cabin with white marble, big columns out front, and a polished bronze door emblazoned with lightning bolts.

I walked up next to them. "I'm guessing this is Zeus's cabin?"

"Are they empty?" Piper asked.

Annabeth nodded at both of our questions. "Zeus went a long time without having any children. Well, mostly. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, the eldest brothers among the gods, the're called the Big Three. Their kids are really powerful, really dangerous. For the last seventy years or so, they tried to avoid having demigod children."

"_Tried _to avoid it?"

"Sometimes they... um, cheated. I've got a friend, Thalia Grace, who's the daughter of Zeus. But she gave up camp life and became a Hunter of Artemis. My boyfriend, Percy, he's a son of Poseidon. An there's a kid who shows up sometimes, Nico-son of Hades. Except for them, there are no demigod children of the Big Three gods. At least, not that we know of."

"And Hera?" Piper asked, and I looked to the cabin next to Zeus's. Hera's cabin was smaller but done in the same style and the door was decorated with peacock feather designs, shimmering in different colors.

"Goddess of marriage." Blondie said but her tone sounded like, 'I don't like her'. "She doesn't have kids with anyone but Zeus. So yeah, no demigods. The cabin's just honorary."

"I'm guessing you don't like her?" I asked.

Annabeth nodded. "We have a long history. I thought we'd made peace, but when Percy disappeared... I got this weird dream vision from her."

"Telling you to come get us," Piper said. "But you thought Percy would be there."

"It's probably better I don't talk about it," Blondie told us. "I've got nothing good to say about Hera right now."

Something caught my eye at the base of the doors. "So who goes in there?"

"No one. The cabin us just honorary, like I said. No one goes in."

I pointed at a dusty footprint. "Someone does," Piper noticed where I was going with this and pushed the doors which swung right open.

I noticed blondie step back. "Um, Piper, Natalia, I don't think we should-"

"We're supposed to do dangerous stuff, right?" My sister does have a point. We both walked inside without another word.

When I walked into Hera's cabin it reminded me of a tomb, because it had no furniture it was just creepy. There was a statue of Hera, about ten feet tall, seated on a throne in flowing golden robes, and her eyes were brightly painted. I thought they were supposed to be blank?

I looked down at the goddess's feet, and there was a fire burned in a bronze brazier. On Hera's shoulder sat a hawk, and in her hand was a staff topped with a lotus flower. Her hair was done in black plaits, she had a smile on her face but her eyes were cold, as if she was saying: "Mother knows best. Now don't cross me or I will beat your ass."

Yep. That's how I picture it.

Then, my sister tugged on my jacket, and I followed her gaze on a figure, covered in a black shawl near a little altar behind the statue.

Annabeth gasped. "Rachel?"

The figure turned, and she dropped her shawl revealing a man of curly red hair and a freckled face. She seems too cheery to be in a place like this.

"Hey!" The figure, Rachel, gave blondie a hug. "I'm so sorry! I cam as fast as I could."

The two started to talk for a few minutes. Hey, McLean sisters still here!

"I'm being rude," Psh naw. "Rachel, this is Piper and Natalia, two of the half-bloods we rescued today. Girls, this is Rachel Elizabeth Dare, our oracle."

"The friend who lives in the cave," Piper and I guessed at the same time.

Rachel grinned. "That's me. So you two sisters?"

"Yep." I nodded.

"So you're an oracle?" My sister asked. "You can tell the future?"

"More like the future mugs me from time to time," Rachel said. "I speak prophecies. The oracle's spirit kind of hijacks me every once in a while and speaks important stuff that doesn't make any sense to anybody. But yeah, the prophecies tell the future."

"Oh." Piper shifted from foot to foot.

"That's cool." I finished, sounding as enthusiastic as I could.

Rachel laughed. "Don't worry. Everybody finds it a little creepy. Even me. But usually I'm harmless."

"You're a demigod?" Piper asked.

"Nope," Rachel said. "Just mortal."

"Then what are you..." I waved my hand around the room.

The red-head's smile faded. She glanced at blondie, then back at me and Piper. "Just a hunch. Something about this cabin and Percy's disappearance. They're connected somehow. I've learned to follow my hunches, especially last month, since the gods went silent."

I raised my eyebrow. "Went silent?"

Rachel frowned at Annabeth. "You haven't told them yet?"

"I was getting to that." Blondie said. "Natalia, Piper, for the last month... well, it's normal for the gods not to talk to their children very much, but usually we cane count on some messages now and then. Some of us can even visit Olympus. I spent practically all semester at the Empire State Building."

"Excuse me?"

"The entrance to Mount Olympus these days."

"Oh," I said. "Sure, why not?"

"Annabeth was redesigning Olympus after is was damaged in the Titan war," Rachel explained. "She's an amazing architect. You should see the salad bar-"

"Anyway," Blondie interrupted, "starting about a month ago, Olympus fell silent. The entrance is closed, and no one could get in. Nobody knows why. It's like the gods have sealed themselves off. Even my mom won't answer my prayers, and out camp director, Dionysus, was recalled."

"Wait, your camp director was the god of," Lemme think. "Wine?"

"Yeah, it's a-"

"Long story," I guessed. "Continue."

"That's it, really," Blondie said. "Demigods still get claimed, but nothing else. No messages. No visits. No sign the gods are even listening. It's like something has happened-something _really_ bad. Then Percy disappeared."

"And Jason showed up on our field trip," My sister supplied. "With no memory."

"Who's Jason?" Rachel questioned.

"My-" I could tell Piper stopped herself before saying "boyfriend". "My friend. But Annabeth, you said Hera sent you a dream vision."

"Right," Blondie said. "The first communication from a god in a month, and it's Hera, the least helpful goddess, and she contacts me, her least favorite demigod. She tells me I'll find out what happened to Percy if I got to the Grand Canyon skywalk and look for a guy with one shoe. Instead, I find you guys, and the guy with one shoe is Jason. It doesn't make sense."

"Something bad is happening," The red-head agreed.

"You got that right." I nodded.

"Guys," I looked over at my sister. "I-I need to-"

Suddenly Rachel's body stiffened and her eyes began to glow a greenish light. She grabbed my sister by the shoulders.

Rachel started to speak but it wasn't her voice. _Free me,_ she said. _Free me, McLeans or the earth shall swallow us. It must be by the solstice. Our enemies stir. The fiery one is only the first. Bow to his will, and their kind shall rise dooming us all. FREE ME!_

It felt like I blacked out for a second because the next thing I know Piper collapses and Rachel falls back. Blondie caches Rachel while I pick up Piper.

Why didn't I black out? She said McLeans. Meaning me, and Piper. So was wasn't I affected?

"Piper?" I questioned, tapping her now pale face. "Sis?"

Oh god, please don't be dead. Don't be dead. Please no.

"Annabeth! What do we do?" I asked frantically.

"Chiron," She answered. "We'll take them to Chiron."

I picked up my sister, having her arm around my shoulders, and Annabeth carrying the other side of her, and we carried her to whoever Chiron was.

We burst through the door where Jason and man who was part horse from the waist down with a well-trimmed beard, T-shirt that said _World's Best Centaur_ and he had a quiver and bow strapped to his back. I'm guessing that's Chiron.

"What happened?" Jason rushed over. "What's wrong with her?"

"Hera's cabin," Annabeth gasped. "Vision. Bad."

Rachel looked up. "I think..." She gulped. "I think I may have killed her.

"What?!" I screeched. "You could not have killed Piper. No, no, and no!"

Chiron let us inside, and I placed Piper on the couch, and sat down next to her, putting her head in my lap.

"We;ve got to heal her," Jason insisted. "There's a way, right?"

"Oh, there better be." I demanded. Piper looked so pale, and she was barely breathing. I may be the little sister, but I am short badass, if you mess with my sister, it's on.

"Her mind is in a fragile state." Chiron put his hand on her forehead. "Rachel, what happened?"

"I wish I knew," She said. "As soon as I got to camp, I had a premonition about Hera's cabin. I went inside. Annabeth, Piper, and Natalia came in while I was there. We talked, and then-I just blanked out. Annabeth said I spoke in a different voice."

"A prophecy?" Chiron asked.

"No. The spirit of Delhi comes from within. I know how that feels. This was like a long distance, a power trying to speak though me."

I let go a sigh of relief when blondie ran in a leather pouch and she knelt next to my sister. "Chiron, what happened back there-I've never seen anything like it. I've heard Rachel's prophecy voice. This was different. She sounded like a older woman. She grabbed Piper's shoulders and told her-"

"To free her from prison?" Jason guessed.

Blondie stared at him. "How did you know that?"

Chiron made a weird gesture over his heart, as if it was a ward against evil. "Jason, tell them. Annabeth, the medicine bag, please."

As Chiron tended to my sister Jason began to explain what happened. Apparently the room froze and a dark misty woman came and claimed to be Jason's patron.

"And another thing with the Piper passing out thing," I said. "Did anyone else notice it say McLeans? And not McLean?"

Annabeth nodded. "That's what I was wondering too. Why didn't affect you?"

I shrugged. "Maybe it was because I was too far away?"

"Guys," Jason said a little irritated. "Does this happen often? Supernatural phone calls from convicts demanding you bust them out of jail?"

"Your patron," Annabeth said. "Not your godly parent."

"No, she said _patron._ She also said my dad had given her my life."

Blondie frowned. "I've never heard of anything like that before. You said the storm on spirit on the skywalk-he claimed to be working for some mistress who was giving him orders, right? Could it be this woman you saw, messing with your mind?"

"I don't think so," Jason said. "If she were my enemy, why would she be asking for my help? She's imprisoned. She's worried about some enemy getting more powerful. Something about a king rising from earth on the solstice-"

Annabeth turned to Chiron. "Not Kronos. Please tell me it's not that."

Chiron checked my sister's wrist before responding. "It is not Kronos. That threat is ended. But..."

"But what?" Annabeth questioned.

The centaur, I think that's what he is called, closed the medicine bag. "Piper needs rest. We should discuss this later."

"Or now," Jason said. "Sir, Mr. Chiron, you told me the greatest threat was coming. The last chapter. You can't possibly mean something worse than an army of Titans right?"

"Oh," The red-head said in a small voice. "Oh, dear. The woman was Hera. Of course. Her cabin, her voice. She showed herself to Jason at the same moment."

"Hera?" Blondie became vicious. "_She_ took you over? She did this to Piper?"

Oh helllll naw! Although I can't really kill a goddess so...

"I think Rachel's right," Jason agreed. "The woman did seem like a goddess. And she wore this-goatskin clock. That's a symbol of Juno, isn't it?"

"It is?" Blondie scowled. "I've never head that."

Chiron nodded. "Of Juno, Hera's Roman aspect, in her most warlike state. The goatskin was a symbol of the Roman soldier.

"So Hear is imprisoned?" I asked.

"Who could do that to the queen of the gods?" Rachel questioned.

Blondie crossed her arms. "Well, whoever they are, maybe we should thank them. If they can shut up Hera-"

"Annabeth," The centaur warned, "she is still one the Olympians. In many ways, she is the glue that holds the god's family together. If she truly has been imprisoned and is in danger of destruction, this could shake the foundations of the world. It could unravel the stability of Olympus, which is never great even in the best of times. And if Hera has asked Jason for help-"

"Fine," Blondie grumbled. "Well, we know Titans can capture a god, right? Atlas captured Artemis a few years ago. And in the old stories, the gods captured each other in traps all the time. But something worse than a Titan...?"

I shrugged. "I've got nothing." No one seemed to acknowledge my answer so I just started to play with my sister's hair.

"Hera said she'd been trying to break through her prison bonds for a month." Jason said.

"Which is how long Olympus has been closed," Blondie remembered. "So the gods must know something bad is going on."

"But why use her energy to send me here?" Jason questioned. "She wiped my memory, plopped me into the Wilderness School field trip, and sent you a dream vision to come pick me up. Why am I so important? Why not just send up an emergency flare to the other gods-let them know where she is so they could bust her out?"

"The gods need heroes to do their will down here on earth," Rachel said. "That's right isn't it? Their fates are always intertwined with demigods."

"That's true," Blondie agreed, "but Jason's got a point. Why him? Why take his memory?"

"And Piper, and Natalia are involved in this somehow," Rachel said. "Hera sent Piper, well Natalia could hear it too, the same message _Free me._ And, Annabeth, this must have something to do with Percy's disappearing."

Blondie looked over at Chiron. "Why are you so quiet, Chiron? What is it we're facing?"

The lines around his eyes were deeply etched which made me a little scared and confused. "My dear, in this, I cannot help you. I am so sorry."

Annabeth blinked, as if he just said, "I'm no hope anymore like I was. Sorry!" but blondie took it worse. "You've never... you've _never _kept information from me. Even the last great prophecy-"

"I will be in my office." His voice was heavy, like, "Subject closed." heavy. "I need some time to think before dinner. Rachel, will you watch the girl? Call Argus to bring her to the infirmary, if you'd like. Natalia you may accompany her. And Annabeth, you should speak with Jason. Tell him about-about the Greek and Roman gods."

"But..."

The centaur was already gone.

"So," I asked, breaking the silence in the air. "Where's the infirmary?"

* * *

**Super duper long chappie! My hands... hurt... tired... Review if you like this story so far! You don't have too I would just like to know...**

**And Natalia's blade is one my profile. It's so awesome! I was like oh snap, this is the perfect blade for her. And I really like the name of it. Badassery!**

**M'kay. Bye!**


	4. Why Am I in A Dress with Makeup?

**I gotta question. When I wrote the little scene when Natalia and Leo stare at each other, who was confused? What do you think happened? All I'm gonna say is, Nat is defiantly the daughter of the goddess of love. XD Just something to think about.**

**Chapter 4: Why Am I in A Dress with Makeup?**

**Chapter Song: Words met Heartbeats Parachute**

_Cause when words meet heartbeats, baby, come on. You know it's not even fair and a first-round knockdown, Baby, the floor, you know I'm already there. And the sun sets high and that moon is low. Cause when words meet heartbeats, baby, you'll know. Well there's silence now, there's nothing more to gain, And it isn't right if I can't run away. Because it kills the mood when there's nothing left to say, And all I can do is sit and let the air speak for you._

* * *

"I'm sorry," Jason said, after Chiron left. "I think my being here-I don't know. I've messed things up coming to the camp, somehow. Chiron said he'd sworn on oath and couldn't take about it."

"What oath?" Blondie demanded. "I've never seen him act this way. And why would he tell me to talk to you about the gods..."

Her eyes trailed over to Jason's blade and she touched it gingerly. "Is this gold? Do you remember where you got it?"

"No," Jason said. "Like I said, I don't remember anything."

Annabeth nodded. "If Chiron won't help, we'll need to figure things out ourselves. Which means... Cabin Fifteen. Rachel, Natalia, keep on eye on Piper?"

"Always," I promised.

"Good luck, you too." Rachel said.

Before they left Jason asked, "Hold on, what's in Cabin Fifteen?"

Annabeth stood up from the couch. "Maybe a way to get your memory back."

Then they left.

"We need to get her to the infirmary." Rachel said.

I nodded. "Okay, I'll carry her."

"Are you sure? I mean-"

"She's my sister," I said. "I got this."

"So," The red-head grinned. "Are you the younger sister or older?"

"Younger. And I'm proud of it!" I told her happily. I picked up Piper in my arms, dang I'm strong, and Rachel lead us towards the infirmary in the Big House.

Rachel sighed. "We're gonna miss dinner."

"Eh," I looked at my sister. "She's my first priority. Even if I need food to live."

"Put her there," She said, pointing to bed with a white curtain on the side. Jason and blondie came to see her, but we had to drag Jason out of there. After they left Piper began to stir a little bit.

"Hey, Piper. How ya' feeling?" I asked. She opened her eyes and they trailed from me to Rachel.

"Where-" Her voice died, and I followed her gaze. Wait, when did that guy get here? He looked like a typical California surfer dude-buff tan, blonde hair, dressed in shorts, and a T-shirt. He had hundreds of blue eyes all over his body. And I mean _everywhere_.

"That's Argus," Rachel introduced, "our head of security. He's just keeping an eye on things... so to speak."

Eye dude, Argus, nodded and the eye on his chin winked.

"Where-" My sister tried to talk again but it looked like she was having trouble.

Rachel answered, "You're in the Big House. Camp offices. We brought you here when you collapsed."

"You grabbed me," Yeah, my sister can talk again! "Hera's voice-"

"I'm sorry about that," The red-head said. "Believe me, It was _not _my idea to get possessed. Chiron healed you with some nectar-"

"Nectar?"

"The drink of the gods." Rachel explained. "In small amounts, it heals demigods, if it doesn't-ah-burn you to ashes."

"Oh, that's comforting to know." I sank back in my chair.

Rachel sat forward. "Do you remember your vision?"

"I remembered some parts." I answered while Piper thought. "She wanted is to free her, like she's trapped."

"Yeah," Piper agreed. "She mentioned the earth swallowing us, and a fiery one, and something about the solstice."

Where Argus was standing he made a rumbling sound in his chest, making his eyes flutter at once.

"Hera created Argus," Rachel explained as Argus grabbed a handful of Kleenex. "He's actually very sensitive when it comes to her safety. We're trying to keep him from crying, because last time that happened... well, it caused quite a flood."

My sister and I tried not to stare at Argus, as her wiped the tears from his elbows. "So... what's happened to Hera?"

"We're not sure," Rachel said. "Annabeth and Jason were here for you. Jason didn't want to leave you, but Annabeth had an idea-something that might restore his memories."

"That's...that's great."

Then she started to cry a little bit. I sat down next to her and wrapped my arms around her. "Hey, it'll be okay."

"Yeah," The red-head agreed. "You two will figure it out."

My sister wiped her eyes. "How can you know what we're facing?"

Rachel shrugged. "I know it's a hard choice, and your options aren't great. Like I said, I get hunches sometimes. But both of you are going to be claimed at the campfire. I'm almost sure. When you know who your godly parent is, things might be clearer."

I exchanged looks with Piper. "We hope it's Athena."

"I don't blame you. Truthfully? I think Annabeth is hoping that too. You guys are a lot alike.

"Another hunch?" Piper said. "You don't know anything about us."

"You'd be surprised."

I raised my eyebrows. "You're just saying that because you're an oracle, aren't you? You're supposed to sound all mysterious."

The red-head laughed. "Don't be giving my secrets, Natalia. And don't worry. Things will work out-just maybe not the way you plan."

"That's not making me feel better." Piper said.

Before anyone could say anything else, a conch horn blew making Argus grumble and he opened the door.

"Dinner?" Piper guessed.

"You slept through it." I told her.

"Time for the campfire." Rachel said. "Let's go find out who you two are."

You know I never really thought about the campfire. Right now I was thinking of all the campers, sitting on logs, stuffing their faces with marshmallows. But no I got so much worse: a sing-along.

The amphitheater steps were carved into the side of a hill, which was facing a stone-lined fire pit where fifty or sixy kids filled the rows, under various banners.

I spotted Jason next to Annabeth, and Leo next to a bunch of burly-looking campers under a steel gray banner emblazoned with a hammer. Leo looked over at me, and smiled. I smiled back, making more butterflies in my stomach.

Back to the sing along, standing in front of the fire were a half a dozen campers with guitars and old-fashioned harps-what are they called again? L..lyres?-were jumping around, leading a song about armor. Not weird at all. Notice my sarcasm.

Finally, and thank hallelujah bus- yes I just said hallelujah bus-, the song song ended. Chiron came trotting up. "Very nice! And a special welcome to our new arrivals. I am Chiron, camp activities director, and I'm happy you have all arrived here alive and with most of your limbs attached. In a moment, I promise we'll get to the s'mores, but first-"

"About about capture the flag?" someone yelled, causing grumbling to break out among some of the kids in armor sitting under a red banner with a emblem of a boar's head.

"Yes, I know the Ares cabin is anxious to return to the woods for out regular games." The centaur said.

"And kill people!" That's comforting...

"However," Chiron said, ignoring the last comment, "until the dragon is brought under control, that won't be possible. Cabin Nine, anything to report on that?"

He turned to Leo's group. Leo grinned, and winked at me. Then he shot and both me and Piper with a finger gun, making me giggle. I had to cover my mouth. The girl next to him stood uncomfortably. She wore an army jacket and her hair was covered in a red bandanna. "We're working on it."

That caused more grumbling.

"How, Nyssa?" one of the Ares kids demanded.

"Really hard," The girl, Nyssa, said and she sat down. More yelling and complaining broke out, but Chiron stamped his hoof against the fire pit stones and everyone shut up.

"We'll have to be patient," Chiron said. "In the meantime, we have more pressing matters to discuss."

"Percy?" someone asked. You could feel the crowd's anxiety in the air. The centaur turned to Annabeth, who took a deep breath before standing.

"I didn't find Percy," she announced. "He wasn't at the Grand Canyon like I thought. But we're not giving up. We've got teams everywhere. Grover, Tyson, Nico, the Hunters of Artemis -everyone's out looking. We _will_ find him. Chiron's talking about something different. A new quest."

A girl called out, "It's the Great Prophecy, isn't it?"

Everyone turned to where the voice came from. Under a rose-colored banner with a dove emblem the groups leader stood up: Drew.

"Drew?" Annabeth said. "What do you mean?"

"Well, _come on_." Drew spread her hands like it was obvious. "Olympus is closed. Percy's disappeared. Hera sends you a vision and you come back with three new demigods in one day. I mean, something weird is going on. The Great Prophecy has started, right?"

I leaned over to Rachel. "What's she talking about-the Great Prophecy?"

Then I realized everyone was looking at Rachel, too.

"Well?" Drew called down. "You're the oracle. Has it started or not?"

I notice the red-head was a little scared. But she stepped forward calmly and addressed the camp. "Yes, the Great Prophecy has begun."

And that's when all hell broke loose, again.

Leo looked over at me. _Crazy right?_ he mouthed.

I rolled my eyes and nodded. D_efiantly. You okay?_

_Never better. _He mouthed back with a grin on his face.

When the talking finally died down, Rachel took a step forward towards the audience. "For those of who have not heard it, the Great Prophecy was my first prediction. It arrived in August. It goes like this: _Eight half-bloods shall answer the call. To storm or fire the world must fall_-"

Suddenly Jason shot to his feet with wild eyes. The red-head was even caught off guard. "J-Jason? What's-"

"_Ut cum spiritu postrema sacramentum dejuremus_," he chanted. "_Et hostes ornamenta addent ad ianuam necem_."

I could tell it was Latin, but everyone was trying to translate it.

"You just... finished the prophecy," Rachel stammered. "-_An oath to keep with a final breath/ And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death._ How did you-"

"I know those lines." It looked like Jason winced and he put his hands to his temples. "I don't know how, but I know that prophecy."

"In Latin, no less," Yeah we kinda already figured that out Drew. "Handsome _and _smart."

I heard giggles from the Aphrodite cabin but I just rolled my eyes. I looked over the campfire and it was actually changing colors from a golden color to a nervous shade of green. Weird, but okay.

Jason sat down, probably embarrassed, and blondie put a hand on his shoulder. My sister looked away with a pained look on her face.

I caught her gaze. _Piper?_

_I don't want to talk about it. _She quickly gazed back.

I looked back at Annabeth, who muttered something reassuring to him. _Piper, it's gonna be okay-_

_How do you know? _

I put my hand on her shoulder. _Because I'm here,_ I smirked. _And we'll get through it, as sisters._

Piper nodded. _I love you, Nat. Your my favorite sis._

_I'm your only sis. _

"Well," Rachel said, trying to regain her composure. "So yeah, that's the Great Prophecy. We hoped it might not happen for years, but I fear it's starting now. I can't give you proof. It's just a feeling. And like Drew said, some weird stuff is happening. The eight demigods, whoever they are, have not been gathered yet. I get the feeling some are here tonight. Some are not here."

Some of the campers began to stir and mutter until a drowsy voice called out, "I'm here! Oh... were you calling roll?"

"Go back to sleep, Clovis," someone yelled, making a lot of people laugh.

"Anyway," The red-head continued, "we don't know what the Great Prophecy means. We don't know what challenge the demigods will face, but since the _first _Great Prophecy predicted the Titan War, we can guess the _second _Great Prophecy will predict something at least that bad."

"Or worse," Chiron murmured. He said it hoping no one would hear him, but mostly everyone did.

The campfire immediately turned dark purple. I wonder what that meant?

"What we _do_ know," Rachel said, "is that the first phase has begun. A major problem has arisen, and we need a quest to solve it. Hera, the queen of the gods, has been taken."

At first it was shocked silence. Then everyone started talking loudly.

The centaur pounded his hoof again, and after a couple moments Rachel got everyone's attention. Rachel explained everything that happened from today at the Grand Canyon, to Jason's vision about Hera in the Big House.

"Jason," The red-head said. "Um... do you remember your last name?"

He sort-of looked self-conscious but he shoke his head.

"We'll just call you Jason, then," Rachel said. "It's clear Hera herself has issued you a quest."

Jason looked brave and determined as he sat his jaw and nodded. "I agree."

"You must save Hera to prevent a great evil," Rachel continued. "Some sort of king from rising. For reasons we don't understand, it must happen by the winter solstice, only four days from now."

"That's the council day of the gods," Annabeth said. "If the gods don't _already_ know Hera's gone, they will definitely notice her absence by then. They'll probably break out fighting, accusing each other of taking her. That's what they usually do."

"The winter solstice," Chiron repeated. "Is also the time of greatest darkness. The gods gather that day, as mortals always have, because there is strength in numbers. The solstice is a day when evil magic is strong. _Ancient_ magic, older than the gods. It is a day when things... stir."

They way he said it... made it sound more creepier and scary.

"Okay," Blondie said, glaring at Chiron. "Thank you, Captain Sunshine. Whatever's going on, I agree with Rachel. Jason has been chosen to lead this quest so-"

"Why hasn't he been claimed?" somebody yelled, probably the same person from the Ares cabin. "If he's so important-"

"He has been claimed," Chiron announced. "Long ago. Jason, give them a demonstration."

Jason stepped forward nervously and glanced at my sister and I. We mimicked flipping a coin, and Piper nodded encouragingly. He smiled at us before reaching in his pocket. The coin flashing in the air, and when he caught it he was holding a rod of gold about seven feet long, with a spear tip at one end.

The campers gasped, and Rachel and blondie stepped away to avoid the point of Jason's... what's it called? Lance?

"Wasn't that..." Annabeth hesitated. "I thought you had a sword."

"Um, it came up tails, I think," Jason said. "Same coin, long-range weapon form."

"Dude, I want one!" It's the same dude from the Ares cabin, again.

"Better than Clarisse's electric spear, Lamer!" Another dude from the same cabin agreed.

Jason murmured something before saying, "Back away."

Piper gripped my hand when Jason raised his javelin causing thunder to break open the sky. Lightning arced down through the golden spear point and hit the campfire. I covered my eyes.

When the smoke cleared I removed my hand and saw the entire camp in shock, half blind, covered in ashes and staring at the place where the fire was just at.

Jason lowered his weapon. "Um... sorry."

The centaur brushed some burning colas out of his beard. "A little overkill, perhaps, but you've made your point. And I believe we know who your father is."

Psssh naw.

"Jupiter," Jason said. "I mean Zeus. Lord of the Sky."

I noticed my sister smile. But the rest of the camp wasn't as happy as her. They began to break into chaos with dozens of people asking questions. Blondie raised her hands. "Hold it! How can he be the son of Zeus? The Big Three... their pact not to have mortal kids... how could we not have known about him sooner?"

Chiron didn't answer but, to me, it was obvious he knew the answer but it wasn't good.

"The important thing," Rachel said, "is that Jason's here now. He has a quest to fulfill which means he will need his own prophecy."

Then she closed her eyes and started to swoon. Two campers rushed foward and caught her, while a third camper grabbed a three-legged stool and eased Rachel into the stool. Green mist started to swirl around the red-head's feet, and when she opened her eyes, they were glowing. Emerald smoke issued from her mouth. And when she spoke, the voice was raspy and ancient:

"_Child of lightning, beware the earth, The giants' revenge the eight shall birth, The forge and doves shall the break the cage, And death unleash through Hera's rage._"

On the last word, she collapsed, but the same campers were waiting to catch her. They carried her away and laid her in a corner to rest.

"Is that normal?" Piper asked.

"Yeah," I continued, "I mean... does she spew green smoke a lot? Or on a daily basis?"

"Gods, you both are dense!" Drew sneered. Oh you're already in the _bitch clique_, beotch! "She just issued a prophecy-Jason's prophecy to save Hera! Why don't you two just-"

"Drew," Blondie snapped. "They asked fair questions. Something about that prophecy _definitely _isn't normal. If breaking Hera's cage unleashes her rage and causes a bunch of death... why would we free her? It might be a trap, or-or maybe Hera will turn on her rescuers. She's never been kind to heroes."

Jason rose. "I don't have much choice. Hera took my memory. I need it back. Besides, we can't just _not_ help the queen of the heavens if she's in trouble.

A girl- Nyssa, stood up from the Hephaestus cabin. "Maybe. But you should listen to Annabeth. Hear can be vengeful. She threw her own son-our dad-down a mountain just because he was ugly."

"_Real_ ugly," someone snickered from Aphrodite cabin.

"Shut up!" Nyssa growled. "Anyway, we've also got to think -why beware the earth? And what's the giants' revenge? What are we dealing with here that's powerful enough to kidnap the queen of the heavens?"

No one answered. Then blondie took a deep breath. "It's Jason's quest, so it's Jason's choice. Obviously, he's the child of lightning. According to tradition, he may choose any two companions.

Some dude from the Hermes cabin, I think, yelled, "Well, you, obviously, Annabeth. You've got the most experience."

"No, Travis," Annabeth said. "First off, I'm _not_ helping Hera. Every time I've tried, she's deceived me, or it's come back to bite me later. Forget it. Secondly, I'm leaving first thing in the morning to find Percy."

"It's connected," My sister blurted out. "You know that's true, don't you? This whole business, your boyfriend's disappearance-it's all connected."

"How?" Drew demanded. "If you're so smart, how?"

She's smarter than you, beotch.

Blondie saved her. "You may be right, Piper. If this is connected, I'll find out from the other end-by searching for Percy. As I said, I'm not about to rush off to rescue Hera, even if her disappearance sets the rest of Olympians fighting again. But there's another reason I can't go. The prophecy says otherwise."

"It says who _I _pick," Jason agreed. "_The forge and doves shall break the cage._ The forge is the symbol of Vul-Hephaestus."

Leo. Leo's cabin.

Nyssa's shoulders slumped. "If you have to beware the earth, you should avoid traveling overland. You'll need air transport. The flying chariot's broken," Nyssa continued, "and the pegasi, we're using them to search for Percy. But maybe Hephaestus cabin can figure something else to help. With Jake incapacitated, I'm senior camper. I can volunteer for the quest."

Then Leo stood up. His gaze shifted to mine. "It's me,"

No, no, and no. I don't care if Nyssa goes, but Leo? No. He could die, get hurt, something would happen. _Not my Leo_. Not without me.

"Leo?" I whispered, and his gaze locked with mine.

"No, it's me. I know it is. I've got an idea for the transportation problem. Let me try." He pleaded. "I can fix this!"

His eyes searched mine, as if he was saying, "I'm sorry."

I took a deep breath, and looked down at the ground. Looks like I wouldn't be with him anymore...

"We started this together, Leo." Jason said. "Seems only right you come along. You find us a ride, you're in."

"Yes!" Leo pumped his fist, but his voice sounded a little sad at the end. Why was he sad? He got to go on a quest.

"It'll be dangerous," Ha. Do you even know Leo? He embraces danger. "Hardships, monsters, terrible suffering. Possibly none of you will come back alive."

Leo didn't look so excited. "Oh," his expression changed when everyone looked at him. "I mean... Oh, cool! Suffering? I love suffering! Let's do this."

Annabeth nodded. "Then, Jason, you only need to chose the third quest member. The two doves-"

"Oh, absolutely!" Drew was on her feet and flashing Jason a smile. The dove is Aphrodite. Everybody knows that. I am _totally _yours."

My sister hands clenched as she stepped forward. "No."

"Oh, please, Dumpster girls. Back off." Drew rolled her eyes.

I stepped forward. "_Piper _had the vision of Hera; not you. She has to do this."

Piper looked at me. "You do, too. The vision had our name in it. You're coming."

"Anyone can have a vision," Drew said. "You were just at the right place at the right time."

"Did it saw you're last name? I don't think so." I glared at her.

She ignored my comment, and looked at Jason. "Look, fighting is fine, I suppose. And people who build things..." She looked at Leo in disdain. Lemme hit her! "Well, I suppose someone has to get their hands dirty, But you need_ charm_ on your side. I can be very persuasive. I could help a lot."

"Well..." Annabeth said. "Given the wording of the prophecy-"

"No!" Piper and I snapped, her voice louder than mine. "We're supposed to go."

"Get over it!" Drew snapped. "What can Piper and Natalia do?"

I can kick your ass in three point five seconds if you'd come over here.

She smiled smugly. "Well, I guess that settles it."

Then there was a sudden collective gasp. Everyone, even Leo, stared at me and Piper. I noticed a reddish glow around me and my sister.

"What?" Piper demanded.

I looked up at my head, hoping there was a symbol like Leo's but no. Nothing. Then Piper yelped. I looked over at her, and she was wearing a dress. I looked down at myself, and _I_ was wearing a dress. It was a sleeveless gown, with a V-neck so low it was very embarrassing. A silver armband circled my bicep, and a silver bracelet on my other hand. My necklace was gleaming a dim red color. It never does that. Ever.

"Oh god," I said. Shocked and scared.

"What's happened?" Piper asked. She was wearing something similar to me. Well we are sisters.

Annabeth pointed at both of our daggers. I pulled it out of its sheath and... oh god... my hair was out of it's pony tail and down past my shoulders, flowing out it little locks. My lips were plump and had a cherry red color to them. Somehow it brought out all the different colors in my eyes.

"Beautiful," Jason exclaimed. "Piper, you... you're a knockout."

I met Leo's gaze, who had his mouth hung wide open. "N-Nat, you... you... you're gorgeous,"

I'm pretty sure I blushed but we still kept searching each other's eyes, as if this was all a dream and I was still wearing my jeans and T-shirt.

"Close your mouth Leo," I breathed out, finally regaining whatever speck of 'talking juice' I had left. "Or you'll catch flies."

Drew's face was full of horror and revulsion. "No!" She cried. "Not possible!"

"This isn't me-us," Piper protested. "I-don't understand."

Chiron folded his front legs and bowed to both of us, and the rest of the campers followed his example. Even when Leo bowed, his gaze was still locked with mine, never looking away for a split second.

"Hail, Piper and Natalia McLean," The centaur announced. "Daughters of Aphrodite, lady of the doves, goddess of love."

* * *

**AWW! I like this chapter a lot. Sorry I haven't updated I had to do this Social Studies project about a country the teacher picked and I got... Ireland! And lemme say that place is beautiful, and to all you Irish people out there, I love you. You are absolutely gorgeous. I mean it! I love Irish people! Not meaning to offend any body if I do...**

**M'kay. Bye!**


	5. Finally Did Something Right

**Wazzup fellow readers? Sorry I just found out where my mom hid my candy, and I ate it, and now... I'M HYPER! Hope you don't mind meh being hyper!**

**Chapter 5: Finally Did Something Right**

**Chapter Song: Take A Look At Your Face- Art vs. Science**

* * *

I woke up as fast as I could. I looked over at the mirror next to me and saw my reflection. I still had makeup, my hair was still nice and curly, and my lips were still plump and a cherry color.

Me and Piper tried everything from messing up our hair, to trying to rub off the makeup, and crying to make our eyes puffy or bloodshot. Nope. Nada. Nothing. My own mother mugged me. That's friggin' messed up man.

Although, the good thing out of all this: Me and Piper get to go on the quest. With Jason. And Leo. But, I did a lot of thinking. My mom is Aphrodite. Goddess of love.

How is that even possible? I mean, I never went out with any guy, never thought of myself as even close to pretty, or even given a second chance to be looked at. I was always judged because of how I already looked. And now, with a dress, makeup, and curly hair, people are actually waving and greeting me.

Me getting claimed, is sorta the best thing ever.

Something else made me happy too. Leo. Last night, it was like everything he held up in his mind was spoken out. So, with that said, I think my crush for Leo is blossoming more and more. I haven't seen him since last night though. He probably passed out in his cabin or something. Hopefully.

Beside me, Piper groaned. "God, it's not coming off."

I looked over at her, and sighed. "I know. It's like sharpie."

She smiled. "Like sharpie."

We wanted to change into different clothes, but the clothes they gave us were more glamorous, like skirts, puffy shirts, and bangles. Gah, doesn't anyone have jeans anymore?

Nope. Guess not.

"Oh, honeys, it won't go away." Drew called across the cabin. "Mom's blessing will last at least another day. Maybe a week if you're lucky."

I gritted my teeth. "A _week_?"

A couple of the Aphrodite kids-my half-brothers and sister, that sounds weird- smirked and snickered.

"Don't worry, hon." Drew was applying fluorescent lipstick on. "You two are thinking you don't belong here? We couldn't agree more. Isn't that right, _Mitchell_?"

One of the guys flinched. See, he don't like you HONEY. "Um, yeah. Sure."

"Mmm-hmm." Then Drew started to apply mascara. "So anyways, people, fifteen minutes until breakfast. The cabin's not going to clean itself! And Mitchell, I think you've learned you've learned your lesson. Right, sweetie? So you're on garbage patrol, just for today, mm-kay? Show Piper and Natalia how it's done, 'cause I have a feeling they'll have that job soon-_if _they survive their _quest._ Now, get to work, everybody! It's my bathroom time!"

Everybody around me and my sister started to rush around, making beds and folding clothes, with the _bitch_- heh, I like that name for her- grabbed all types of makeup accessories and marched into the bathroom, where someone inside yelped. A girl about eleven was kicked out, and she still had shampoo in her hair.

Once the door slammed shut, the girl started to cry, and a couple older campers comforted her.

"Seriously?" I ask, standing a little tall, using my 'speech and protest' voice.

"You let Drew treat you like this?" Piper said, talking to no one in particular.

"No offense," I said, looking around at all of them. "But that's kinda stupid and pathetic."

Piper elbowed me, but other campers ignored us and kept working. Except for one. She looked about twelve or thirteen with orange, almost strawberry blonde hair and dark brown eyes, stood uncomfortably. I had to admit she was pretty. Although the reason why she stood out, even though she was wearing a skirt, her clothes weren't designer or bedazzled with sparkles.

I decided to be a nice person, forgetting everything that happened with Drew today, and walked over to her.

"Hi," I chirp in the nicest 'I'm a happy, morning person!' voice, holding my hand out. "I'm Natalia. Or Nat. Either one."

She smiled, unsurely and shoke my hand. "I'm Mirabelle. Or Mira for short. I'm sorta new here."

"Me too. In fact I'm kinda glad you didn't follow them," I said, referring to other cabin members, still cleaning around the beds.

"Yeah," She wrapped her arms around herself. "I think that Drew is a..."

"psychotic beotch? Motherfudgin' mean girl? _Bitch_?" I suggested.

Mirabelle giggled. "Ah hum."

I smiled, wrapping my arm around her shoulder. "I like you, Mira. I'm glad we're kinda related."

"Me too, Nat." She smiled back, brushing her hair from her face. Then she dug in her pocket and pulled out a piece of Juicy Fruit. "Here, you're the first one to be nice to me."

"Hey," I took the gum gratefully. "Nice is my middle name."

"Actually," My sister says, appearing next to me. "It's Renee, but whatever."

I glare at her. "Yeah, and your's is Victoria. Heh, Icky Vicky."

Piper hits me in the back of the head, making Mirabelle giggle. "I thought I told you never to speak of that."

"Oh!" I say, using a posh tone. "I'm being rude. Mirabelle, this is my sister Piper. Sissy met Mirabelle. Or Mira."

Mira smiled, and both her and my sister shake hands. "Nice to met you,"

"Same," Piper smiles. Her smiles stays, when Mira gives her a piece of Juicy Fruit.

My sister nods. "Thanks, Mira."

She shrugs. "It's nothing, really."

Mira was about to go to her bed but she turned around and said, "If it helps, my middle name is Bryn."

Then my sister was staring at a poster. Not just any poster, oh no. _The poster._ The poster of one of my dad's movies: King of Sparta. I nudged Piper in the elbow softly, and gestured to the other people behind us.

"Oh," She realized, peeling her eyes off the poster. "Right, right."

I tried to look busy by straightening the blankets, and pillows, but that was about it. I don't move around in my sleep, as much as I used to when I was little.

"'Scuse me," a voice said, below me. Mitchell, I think his name was, was on all fours, picking up random candy wrappers and crumpled notes from under the bunk beds.

Yeah, Aphrodite kids weren't one hundred percent neat freaks... not at all.

I plopped down on Piper's bed, moving out of Mitchell's way.

"What'd you do to make Drew mad?" My sister asks.

He glanced over at the bathroom door, making sure it was closed. "Last night, after you two were claimed, I said you two might not so bad."

Woah, he actually stood up for us? I could tell Piper was stunned. It wasn't that much of a compliment, but it was something, a _start._

"Thanks," Piper said.

He shrugged. "Yeah, well. See where it got me. But for what it's worth, welcome to Cabin Ten."

"Given everything that's happened, that's one of the best greeting's I've gotten." I said.

Then a girl with blond pigtails and braces raced forward with a pile of clothes in her hand.

"I brought you two these," she whispered.

"Piper, Natalia, meet Lacy." Mitchell said, still crawling on the floor.

"Hi," Lacy greeted breathlessly. "You two _can_ change into clothes. The blessing won't stop you. This is just, you know, a backpack, some rations, ambrosia and nectar for emergencies, some jeans, a few extra shirts, and two warm jackets. Both of the boots might be a little snug. But-well-we took up a collection. Good luck on your guy's quest!" She dumped on the things on the bed and almost rushed off, but I caught her arm.

"Hold on. At least let us thank you! Why are you rushing off?" I ask.

Lacy was shaking nervously. Like a lot. "Oh, well-"

"Drew might find out," Mitchell explained.

"I might have to wear the shoes of shame!" Lacy gulped.

I raised my eyebrow. "The what now?"

Both of them pointed to a black shelf mounted in the corner of the room, and displayed were a hideous pair of orthopedic nurse's shoes, which were bright white and thick soles.

"I had to wear them for a week once," Lacy whimpered. "They don't go with _anything_!"

I had a devious grin on my face. "Does anyone have a sharpie?"

Mirabelle skipped forward, with a neon pink sharpie. "Here ya' go, Nat."

I uncapped it. "Why thank you."

"Nat," Piper asked. "What are you- oh! Go ahead."

I went toward the shoes and started to draw _all over _them. I made little swirls, polka dots, checkered tiles, just everything that could make Drew pissed.

No one seemed to notice, or care for that matter, what I did. Score 1 for me.

"And there're worse punishments," Mitchell warned, as I sat back down next to my sister. "Drew can charmspeak, see? Not many Aphrodite kids have that power; but if she tries hard enough, she can get you to do some pretty embarrassing things. You two, are on the first people I've seen in a long time who is able to resist her."

"Charmspeak..." Piper and I echoed.

My eyes widened. "You mean, like, you could talk someone into doing tings. Or... giving you things. Like a car?"

"Oh, don't give Drew any ideas!" Lacy gasped.

"But yeah," Mitchell nodded. "She could do that."

"So that's why she's head counselor," My sister said.

"She convinced you all?" I questioned.

Mitchell, who was still picking up trash, shoke his head. "Nah, she inherited the post when Silena Beauregard died in the war. Drew was second oldest. Oldest camper automatically gets the post, unless somebody with more years or more completed quests wants to challenge, in which case there's a duel, but that hardly ever happened. Anyways, we've been stuck with Drew in charge since August. She decided to make some, as, _changes_ in the way the cabin is run."

"Yes, I did!" Suddenly Drew, I mean _bitch_- ha never gets old- was leaning against the bunk. Lacy squeaked and tried to run, but Drew put her arm up to stop her. Then she looked down at Mitchell. "I think you missed some trash, sweetie. You'd better make another pass."

Me and my sister glanced toward the bathroom, and inside Drew had dumped everything from the bathroom waste bin, all over the floor.

Mitchell sat up and glared at Drew. He looked like he was about to attack her, which I would greatly help with but finally he snapped, "Fine."

Drew smiled. "See, Piper, Natalia, we're a good cabin here. A good family! Silena Beauregard, though... you could take a warning from her. She was secretly passing information to Kronos in the Titan War, helping the _enemy_."

I am just about ready to hit her. Oh please, lordy, lemme hit her!

"Oh, none of the other cabins talk about it," Drew confided. "They act like Silena Beauregard was a hero."

"She sacrificed her life to make things right," Mitchell grumbled. "She_ was_ a hero."

Ha, I betcha Drew would never to that. I put money on it. Oh, I _so_ put money on it.

"Mmm-hmm," Drew the psychotic_ bitch_ said. "Another day on garbage patrol, Mitchell. But _anyways_, Silena lost track of what this cabin is about. We match up cute couples at camp! Then we break them apart and start over! It's the best fun ever, We don't have any business getting involved in other stuff like wars and quests. _I_ certainly haven't been on any quests. They're a wast of time!"

Lacy, who was quiet until now, raised her hand nervously. "But last night you said you wanted to go on a-"

Then Drew glared at her, making her voice die instantly.

"Most of all," Drew-_ Bitch-_ continued, "we certainly don't need our image tarnished by spies, do we, _girls_?"

Neither me or my sister answered.

"It's too bad you two won't be around," Drew sighed. "But if you two survive your little quest, don't worry, I'll find _somebody_ to match up with you guys. Maybe one of those gross Hephaestus guys. Or Clovis? He's pretty-"

Anger boiled in my veins, when she said, 'Gross Hephaestus guys,'. I snapped. Oh you best believed _I snapped._ "If you say one more _fucking_ word about Leo's cabin, I will beat your _motherfuckin' ass _from here until Australia where you will be swimming with the fishes in the Coral Reef."

_Ohhs_, erupted the room. Even a couple campers walking by stopped and looked. Oh yeah. Natalia McLean can go _hella bitch_ on your ass if you say one word no a single fucking word, about any of my friends, I'm snappin' on you.

When she said something about Leo, oh... no one messes with _my Leo._ He's the sweetest, nicest, funniest, guy I've ever met. He deserves better than me.. an Aphrodite girl, who's dad is a famous movie star. Leo deserves _way_ better than me.

Drew backed off a little bit, but rolled her eyes. "But honestly, I don't think it was_ possible_ for Aphrodite to have _two_ ugly children, but... who _was_ your father? Was he some sort of mutant, or-"

"Tristan McLean," Piper snapped. Oh, two McLean's snapping out on the same person? In one day? Shit's 'bout to go down in a couple minutes.

"Our dad's Tristan McLean." I said, but immediately regretting it like my sister did. There was a stunned silence in the air, and everyone, and I mean _everyone_ turned to _The Poster_.

"Oh my god!" half the girls screamed a once but one guy said, "Sweet! The dude with the sword who killed that other dude in that movie?"

"He is _so_ hot for an old guy," a girl said, and she blushed. "I mean I'm sorry. I know he's you're guy's _dad_. That's _so_ weird."

Me and my sister nodded. "It's weird, all right,"

"Do you think you could get me his autograph?" another girl asked.

"Yeah," I managed a smile. "Sure. No problem."

And then the girls squealed again. That's when the questions were asked. About a million at once:

"Have one of you been on set?"

"Do you guys like in a mansion?"

"Oh! Do you two have lunch with movie stars?"

"Have you two ever had your rite of passage?"

I blinked. "The who, what, now?"

The guys and girls giggled, and shoved each other around like this was an embarrassing topic. It sounds like when you first start your period. Which sucks.

"The rite of passage for an Aphrodite child," one explained. "You get someone to fall in love with you. Then break their heart. Dump them. Once you do that, you've proven yourself worthy of Aphrodite."

I looked at my sister. _They're joking, right?_

_Oh, god. I hope they are._ She sent a nervous glance.

"Well," another girl stepped forward. "There is one _rare_ thing of Aphrodite called, Clarity. It's like finding your true love, which is sorta against Aphrodite. That's why it's rare. But, anyways, finding your Clarity, means that you're bound to them for life. No turning back. Both of you will eventually follow it, and in the end you live happily ever after, _blah_, _blah_, _blah_."

"And it's like imprinting from the Twilight movies," another girl said dreamily, with a 'Team Edward' shirt on. "You find them when your crush, or love for them starts to blossom. _So_ romantic."

"But still," Piper said. "Breaking someone's heart on purpose? That's terrible!"

A confused guy asked, "Why?" The most basic question.

"Oh my god!" a girl exclaimed, the same one with the 'Team Edward' shirt on. "I bet Aphrodite broke your _dad's_ heart! I bet he never loved anyone again, did he? That's so romantic! When you have your rite of passage, you can be just like Mom!"

"Forget it!" My sister yelled. "I'm_ not_ breaking somebody's heart just for a stupid rite of passage!"

"Preach it, sista!" I said, raising my hands up in the air. Mira giggled at my joke, and Piper started to calm down.

"Well, there you go!" Drew cut in. Aw, I liked the silence! "Silena said the same thing. She broke tradition, fell in love with that Beckendorf boy, and _stayed_ in love. If you ask me, that's why things ended tragically for her?"

Lacy squeaked, defending Silena, "That's not true!"

But she melted back into the crowd when Drew glared at her.

"Hardly matters," Drew continued, "because, Piper, Natalia, you two couldn't break anyone's heart anyway. And this nonsense about your dad being Tristan McLean-that's _so_ begging for attention."

Some of the other kids blinked. "You mean he's _not _their dad?"

Drew rolled her eyes. "Please. Now, it's time for breakfast, people, and the McLean sisters here have to start their little quest. So let's get them packed up and out of here!"

She broke up the crowd, Mira also leaving, but Mitchell and Lacy helped us pack. And some hand-me-downs which were jeans, a T-shirt, comfortable winter coat for Piper, hoodie for me from Mitchell, hiking boots for Piper, and sneakers for me also from Mitchell. I had Falcata strapped to my belt.

I am now a complete badass.

Mira came over to me. "Here," she handed me a _whole_ pack of Juicy Fruit.

I smiled. "Thanks, Mira. You're really nice, you know that?"

She blushed. "It's no problem, really. I'm just glad I made a friend, today."

I gave her a small hug, before stuffing the gum packet in my hoodie pocket.

When we came out, we both mouthed, _Thank you_ to Lacy and Mitchell, who flashed a smile. Then Drew spotted us. "Very nice! Our little quest girls are all dressed in Dumpster clothes again. Now, off you go! No need to ear breakfast with us. Good luck with... whatever. Bye!"

Except I wasn't leaving yet. I got some unfinished business to attend too. But let's just talk so more before I do it. Because I have _so _many reasons why I can.

Once we were almost out the door, my sister turned. "You know, you all don't have to follow Drew's orders."

"Umm," one person, who wasn't' shifting around, managed, "she's our head counselor."

"She's a tyrant," I corrected. And a lot more things but there are younger children here, who don't need to hear _those_ words yet. "You guys can think for yourselves. There's got to more to Aphrodite than _this_."

One kid echoed, "More than this,"

And another, "Think for ourselves,"

"People!" Drew screeched. "Don't be stupid! They're charm-speaking you."

"No," I said honestly. "We're not."

"We're just telling the truth." At least, I don't think we were.

Drew sneered at us. "You may have a little power, Movie Star Misses. But you don't know that first think about Aphrodite. You have such great ideas? Why do you think this cabin is about, then? Tell them. Then maybe I'll tell them a few things about _you two_, huh?"

Oh, if Piper wasn't clutching my arm tightly, I would've punched her. Believe me I wanted to, so bad.

"Not this," My sister said. "Aphrodite is not about this."

We turned and stormed out the cabin, and Piper let go of my arm.

Behind us, I could her Drew laughing. "_Not this_? Hear that, people? They don't have a clue!"

I turned around. Turned right on my friggin heels.

And I walked up to her.

I punched her. Right in the face. Leaving a _huge _red mark.

She fell back on the ground clutching her face, tears brimming on the side of her eyes. The other campers behind her stood dumbfounded.

I smirked, and made a peace out sign with my fingers. "Deuces!"

Piper was turned around, with her mouth hung wide open. "I love you so much, Nat."

"I know-" Then I looked up and saw a dragon swooping down from the sky. Riding the dragon, was a person with curly hair.

"Leo?" I yelled, and sure enough it was him, atop of a giant bronze death machine and grinning like a lunatic.

"Don't kill me!" He yelled, as soon as half the camp ran outside with a mixture of pajamas and armor. The dragon set down right in the middle, looking a little lazy. "It's cool! Don't shoot!"

The archers, hesitantly I might add, lowered their weapons, and the warriors backed away but still keeping their weapons ready. Nobody seemed anxious to get close.

I would.

The dragon was huge, like a living penny sculpture with steel talons, a drill-bit teeth and glowing ruby eyes. It had bat-shaped wings twice it length, making little sounds like coins cascading out of a slot machine every time they flapped.

"It's beautiful," I muttered.

"People of Earth, I come in peace!" Leo shouted. He met my gaze and smiled. Although, for some reason, he looked like he had been rolling around in the campfire, with soot all over is face and army coat. His hands were grease-stained, and he also wore a new tool belt around his waist. His eyes were bloodshot, and my favorite curly hair was so oily is stuck up like porcupine quills. And the best part of it: He looked so delighted. "Festus is just saying hello!"

I just checked out Leo Valdez, didn't I?

"That things is dangerous!" No one cares that I just checked out Leo? "Kill it now!"

"Stand down!" someone ordered.

I looked over and surprisingly it was Jason, with Annabeth and Nyssa, the girl from the Hephaestus cabin, behind him. "Leo, what have you done?"

"Found a ride!" My crazy friend beamed. "You said I could go on the quest if I got you a ride. Well, I got you a class-A metallic flying bad boy! Festus can take us anywhere!"

"It-has wings," Nyssa stammered.

"Yeah!" Leo said. "I found them and reattached them."

"But it never had wings. Where did you find them?"

Leo hesitated, and I could tell he was hiding something.

"In... the woods," he said. "Repaired his circuits, too, mostly, so no more problems with him going haywire."

"Mostly?" Nyssa questioned.

The dragon's head twitched. It tilted its head to the side, and a stream of black liquid- hopefully oil- poured out it's ear, all over Leo.

"Just a few kinks to work out," Leo said, still cheerful.

"But how did you survive...?" Nyssa was still in awe. "I mean the fire breath..."

"I'm quick," he said. "And lucky. Now, am I on this quest, or what?"

Jason scratched his head. "You named him Festus? You now that in Latin, 'festus' means 'happy'? You want us to ride off to save the world on Happy the Dragon?"

So funny. Ha. Ha. Hah.

"That's a yes, bro!" Leo said. "Now, um, I'd really suggest we get going, guys. I already picked up some supplies in the-um, in the woods. And all these people with weapons are making Festus nervous.

Jason frowned. "But we haven't planned anything yet. We can't just-"

"Go," Annabeth said. She didn't look nervous at all. Her expression was sad and wistful. "Jason, you've only got three days until the solstice now, and you should never keep a nervous dragon waiting. This is certainly a good omen. Go!"

I walked up to Festus, where Leo held out his hand. "M'lady," he smirked, as he pulled me up. I wrapped my arms around his waist once I was on.

"Don't worry," Leo whispered behind me. "I won't let you fall."

"Promise, Dragon boy?" I smiled, burring my face in his back.

"I promise, Gorgeous."

Once we were up in the air, well. Lemme just say that it is AWESOME! I mean it's like you're flying! But don't look down. I just kept my face buried in Leo's back.

We already shoot over Connecticut, and climbed into gray winter clouds.

Leo grinned at us. "Cool, right?"

"What if we get spotted?" Piper questioned.

"The Mist," Jason said. "It keeps mortals from seeing magic things. If they spot us, they'll probably mistake us for a small plane or something."

My sister glanced over her shoulder. "You sure about that?"

"No," Jason admitted, before shoving something in his pocket. "We;re making good time. Probably get there by tonight."

I glanced behind me, to look at Jason. "Where are we heading exactly?"

"To find the god of the North Wind," Jason answered. "And chases some storm spirits."

* * *

**I like fluffy fluff. Just gonna put that out there now. And who liked it when Drew got POWNED! Yerp. She deserved it. **

**And guys... 22 reviews? I really,**_** seriously**_**, appreciate it. One question, it's just been in the back of my mind, why do you like this story so much? I mean is it because it's Leo/OC or is it because my idea is unique? Just wondering, so I can perfect it, if possible. But as they say, anything is possible for a Possible! Wink, Wink!**

**M'kay. Bye!**


	6. Hmm What's the Word? Love, Yeah Love

**Okay new thing guys: since school is a total bitch I can only update on late Fridays or on the weekends which totally sucks! But anyways who likes Kingdom Hearts? I kinda have a confession 'bout that game... see uh I'm completely in love with Sora. No doubt about it. And I was thinking AFTER I finish my stories I'll make a KH fic. Sound good?**

**And for the last chappie, the Claim chappie I tried to make the outfit and it's not the best but something along those lines. Srry if it sucks but I tried... It's on my profile BTW.**

**Chapter 6: Hmm What's the Word? Love, Yeah Love.**

**Chapter Song: Halo- Beyonce**

_It's like I've been awakened, Every rule I had you breakin'. It's the risk that I'm taking, I ain't never gonna shut you out! Everywhere I'm looking now, I'm surrounded by your embrace. Baby, I can see your halo, You know you're my saving grace. You're everything I need and more, It's written all over your face. Baby, I can feel your halo, Pray it won't fade away._

* * *

I blinked my eyes around and noticed I still had my arms around Leo and my face was pressed against his back. Leo was really warm and comfy. My Leo pillow. _Mine._

"Shut up, me" Leo said.

I placed my head on his shoulder. "What'd you say?"

"Nothing," he told me. "Long night. I think I'm hallucinating. It's cool."

"Uh-huh," I raised my eyebrows. "Good to know."

"Just joking," Leo rolled his eyes. "So what's the plan, bro? You said something about catching wind, or breaking wind, or something?"

I thunk-ed him the side of his head. "You're such a genius, Valdez."

"I try," he smirked. "I really do, McLean."

I covered his mouth. "Don't say my name aloud. You never know there could be paparazzi birds flying around."

"Paparazzi birds? Really? And I thought you were the genius." Leo said, sounding muffled since I still had my hand covering his mouth.

I stuck my tongue out at him. "You love my geniousness anyways."

I heard him mutter something but I didn't question what he said. But it sounded like, _I really love more than your geniousness_.

No one noticed my blush, _thank god_. And butterflies were just everywhere in my stomach after Leo said that.

Jason ignored our comments and started to lay out the game plan: First we would find some guy name Boreas and grill him for info.

"Wait, wait," I stopped Jason. "_Boreas_?"

"What is he, the God of Boring?" Leo asked.

Still ignoring our comments, Jason continued saying we had to find the _venti_ that attacked us at the Grand Canyon.

Leo interrupted, "Can we just call them storm spirits? _Venti_ makes them sound like evil espresso drinks."

And yet, Jason still continued say that we had to find out who the storm spirits worked for, so we could find Hera and set her free.

"So you want to look for Dylan, the nasty storm dude, _on purpose_," Leo said, after Jason finished talking. "The guy who threw me off the skywalk and sucked Coach Hedge into the clouds."

"That's about it," Jason said. "Well... there may be a wolf involved, too. But I think she's friendly. She probably won't eat us, unless we show weakness."

He told us about his dream- something about a big nasty mother wolf and a burned-out house with stone spires growing out of the swimming pool.

"Comforting," I muttered.

"Uh-huh." Leo said, "But you don't know where this place is."

Jason shrugged. "Nope."

"There's also giants," My sister added. "The prophecy said _the giants' revenge_."

"Hold on," Leo turned around a little bit. "Giant-like more than one? Why can't it be just one giant who wants revenge?"

I shrugged. "Maybe it's a thing were 'If one of us gets messed with you deal with all of us!'."

Piper nodded. "I remember in some of the Greek old stories me and Nat read, there was something about an army of giants."

"Great," Leo muttered. "Of course, with our luck, it's an army. So you two know anything else about these giants?" Then he looked at me. "Didn't you and Pipers do a huge myth research for that movie with your dad?"

"Your guys dad is an actor?" Jason asked.

Leo laughed. "I keep forgetting about your amnesia. Heh. Forgetting about the amnesia. That's funny. Write that one down for me, Nat. But yeah their dad is Tristan McLean."

"Uh-Sorry, what was he in?"

"It doesn't matter," My sister quickly said. "Nat knows more than me, about the giants."

"Yeah," I rubbed the back of my neck. "The giants- well, there was a lot of giants in Greek mythology. But, from the the pictures in the book, and how I visualized them they were bad news. Huge, almost impossible to kill or even injure. They were so huge that they could throw mountains and stuff like that. And I think they were related to the Titans. They rose from the earth after Kronos lost the war, the _first_ Titan war, and they tried to destroy the big place. Olympus. If it's the same giants were screwed."

"Chiron said it was happening again," Jason told us. "The last chapter. That's what he meant. No wonder he didn't want us to know all the details."

Beside my Leo whistled. "So... giants who can throw mountains. Friendly wolves that will eat is if we show weakness. Evil espresso drinks. Gotcha. Maybe this isn't the time to bring up my psycho babysitter."

"Is that another on of your 'Famous Leo' jokes?" I asked using quotation marks with my hands.

Leo shoke his head and chuckled. "Not this time, Nat." Then he started to explain about someone, his babysitter, name Tia Callida who was really Hera. And about how she showed herself to him at camp. He also said something about a strange women in earthen robes who seemed to know the future.

"That's..." Piper couldn't find the right word.

"Disturbing? Terrifyingly creepy?" I finished.

"'Bout sums it up," Leo said. "Thing is, everybody says don't trust Hera. She hates demigods. And the prophecy said we'd cause death if we unleash her rage. So I'm wondering... why are we doing this?"

I nodded. "He does have a point. I mean we could stayed at camp, and-"

"Punch Drew in the face again?" Piper suggested smirking. "Oh yeah."

"Wait, wait. You punched Drew?" Leo asked, and I nodded. "Badass."

I gave him a fist pump.

"But guys, Hera chose us," Jason said. "All four of us. We're the first eight who have to gather for the Great Prophecy. This quest is the beginning of something much bigger."

I laughed. "So I get to spend a longer time with you guys? Oh joy,"

"Love you too, sissy." Piper said crossing her arms.

Although spending all day, _everyday_, with Leo I would not mind.

"Besides," Jason continued, "helping Hera is the only way I can get my memory. And that dark spire in my dream seemed to feeding on Hera's energy. If that thing unleashes a king of the giants destroying Hera-"

"Not a good trade-off," My sister agreed. "At least Hera is on our side-mostly. Losing her would the gods into chaos. She's the main one who keeps peace in the family. And a war with the giants could be even more destructive than the titans war."

Jason nodded. "Chiron also talked about worse forces stirring on the solstice, with it being a good time for dark magic, and all-something that could awaken if Hera were sacrificed on that day. And this mistress who's controlling the storm spirits, the one who wants to kill all the demigods-"

"Might be that weird sleeping lady," Leo finished. "Dirt Woman fully awake? Not something I want to see."

"But who is she?" Jason asked. "And what does she have to do with giants?"

"Very good questions," I said. "But we've got no answers."

We stayed silent as Festus kept flying. The wind got colder, and I zipped up the hoodie I was given. Piper and Jason were having a silent conversation amongst themselves. I looked over at Leo and say him dozing off a little. To be honest, so was I.

"Hey," Piper said. "Why don't you two get some sleep? I can tell you guys are tired."

"Pssh," I yawned. "Yeah, I am."

"You won't let us fall, right?"

My sister patted his shoulder. "Trust me, Valdez. Beautiful people never lie."

I was suddenly pulled into someone's chest and arms wrapped around my waist. Leo.

"Right," Leo muttered. I looked up at Leo's face and kissed his check.

"Night Dragon boy," I murmured in his chest. Ah I'm blushing so much right now.

Leo placed his heat atop of mine. "G'night Nat."

It only felt like a few seconds before I heard, "Nat, wake up."

My head was rested into the crook of Leo's neck, who was still sleeping, my arms wrapped around his neck, and his wrapped around my waist.

And theres the butterflies, right on cue.

I rubbed my eyes to look at my sister. "Morning. Want me to wake him up?"

"Yeah, and I'll wake up Jason." She said, referring to the sleeping figure behind her.

I nodded and looked up at Leo. His curly hair was in face, with drool on the side of his mouth. Gah, so cute.

"Leo?" I murmured in his ear. "Wake up. Leo?"

His eyes opened, and he looked around. "Tell me that's Quebec and not Santa's workshop."

I followed his gaze and sure enough we were in Quebec with clusters of buildings, and an actual castle right smack dab in the middle. Wait no, hotel. Yeah, hotel.

"Yeah, Quebec City," I confirmed. "One of the oldest cities in North America. I think it was founded around sixteen hundred years or somewhere along that line."

Leo raised an eyebrow. "Your dad do a movie about that too?"

"Hey, I actual _read_ Valdez. Just because me and PIper were claimed by Aphrodite doesn't mean I'm some airhead who doesn't know how to complete a maze game on the back of a kid menu at a restaurant."

"Feisty! So if you know so much, miss Gorgeous what's that castle."

"Correction, hotel."

Leo laughed. "No way."

I was right. It was an actual hotel with sleek black luxury cars parked out in front. And probably snobby rich people inside.

"The North Wind is staying in a hotel?" Leo said. "That can't be-"

"Heads up, guys," Jason interrupted. "We got company!"

Below us, tow winged figures- evil gargoyles, with nasty-looking swords were rising from the top of the tower.

Festus made a rumbling sound in his throat, which made me think the angry gargoyle guys were bad. Very bad.

"Steady, boy," Leo muttered.

"I don't like this," Jason said. "The look like storm spirits."

I looked closely at them but they looked more solid, and like teenagers with white hair and feathery purple wings. "You sure 'bout that Jason?"

One of them was huge- like the size of an ox with a bright red hockey jersey, baggy sweatpants, and black leather cleats. His eyes scared me, because both of them were black as if he just got out of a fight. His teeth were worse, because some of them were missing.

The other guy looked more... decent. He had ice-white hair which was long and fathered into a mullet. He wore pointy-toed leathered shoes, a horrible silk shirt with three buttons, and worst of all, designer pants that were way too tight. He kinda looked live a groovy love god' but he had a bad case of acne all over his face.

The gargoyles pulled up in front of Festus and hovered there with their swords ready.

I turned to my sister. _These guys look welcoming._

_I know right._ My sister had a little bit of fear in her eyes. I wouldn't be surprised if I did too.

Hockey dude with missing teeth grunted. "No clearance."

"'Scuse me?" Leo said.

"You have to no flight plan on file," the groovy love god explained, and he had such an fake french accent it made me want to slap him. "This is restricted airspace."

"Destroy them?" Missing teeth dude said showing off his missing teeth.

Festus began to hiss/steam like he was ready to defend us. Jason summoned his sword, and I reached for my dagger, but Leo cried, "Hold on! Let's have some manners here, boys. Can I least find out who had the honor of destroying me?"

"I am Cal!" Missing teeth dude grunted. He seemed pretty proud of his sentence. If only someone had some teacher stickers that said something like, "Good Job!" or "You're a Star!"

Oh the humor there...

"That's short for Calais," groovy dude said. "Sadly, my brother cannon say words with more that two syllables"

"Pizza! Hockey! Destroy!" Cal offered raising his hands up.

"-which includes his own name," groovy dude finished.

I scooted closer to my sister. _To be honest, I'm scared._

She nodded. _Same here, sis._

"I am Cal," Cal repeated. "And this is Zethes! My brother!"

"Wow," Leo said. "That was almost three sentences, man! Way to go."

Cal grunted as if he was pleased with himself.

"Stupid buffoon," Zethes grumbled. "They make fun of you. But no matter. I am Zethes, which is short for Zethes. And the ladies there-" He winked at both me and Piper which made my stomach hurl. "They can call me anything they like. Perhaps you both would like to have diner with some famous demigods before we must destroy you?"

Leo glared daggers at him. "Dude, back off," he growled.

Oh god, I'm not breathing over here.

But I managed, "Back the fuck off of me and my sister."

Piper made a sound like she was gagging. "That's... a truly horrifying offer."

"It is no problem." Zethes wiggled his eyebrows. "But as for your sister her, I'll keep and eye on her," I could hear Leo slightly growl at him. "'Sides we are a very romantic people, we Boreads."

"Boreads?" Jason cut in. "Do you mean, like, the sons of Boreas?"

"Ah, so you've heard of us!" Can I slap him yet? "We are our father's gatekeepers. SO you understand, we cannot have unauthorized people flying in his airspace on creaky dragon, scaring the silly mortal peoples."

He pointed below and sure enough people were started to notice pointing up with more confusion and annoyance and not alarm. We probably look like a helicopter flying too low right now.

"Which is sadly why, unless this is an emergency landing," Zethes said, brushing his hair out of his acne covered face. "We will have to destroy you painfully."

I sent an alarming look to my sister. _I got a plan._

_Do it, now._ She sent a glance back.

"Destroy!" Cal agreed with a lot more enthusiasm.

"Wait!" I said putting my hands up. "This _is _an emergency landing."

"Awww!" Cal actually looked disappointed.

Zethes studied me. "How does the pretty bad mouth girl decide this is an emergency, then?"

Think, Nat, think.

"We defiantly have to see Boreas! It's really _super_ urgent. Please?" I forced my smile.

He started to pick at his shirt. "Well... I hate to disappoint a lovely lady, but you see, my sister, she would have an avalanche if we allowed you-"

"A-and our dragon, he's malfunctioning!" I quickly added. "He could crash any second!"

I noticed Festus shuddered helpfully and turned his head, causing spilled gunk out of his ear.

"No destroy?" whimpered Cal.

Zethes then gave me another spasmodic wink, and I wanted to throw up. "Well, you are pretty. I mean, you're _right_. A malfunctioning dragon-this could be an emergency."

"Destroy them later?" Cal offered.

"It will take some explaining, father has not been kind to visitors lately. But yes." Zethes decided. "Come, faulty dragon people. Follow us."

Cal and Zethes pulled out flashlights from their toolbelts which had orange cones. Then they swooped down towards the hotel's tower.

"Ugh," I groaned, trying to get the image out of mind from Zethes smirking. "You guys _totally_ owe me."

Leo turned to us. "I love these guys. Follow them."

Jason didn't look eager. "I guess, we're here now. But I wonder why Boreas hasn't been kind to visitors."

"Pfft, he just hasn't met us." Leo whistled. "Festus, after those flashlights."

At first, when got closer I thought we would crash. The brothers made a right for a green gabled peak and they didn't slow down. Then a section of the roof slid open, revealing an entrance big enough for Festus, but the top and bottom were lined with icicles that looked like jagged teeth. So that's were Cal's teeth went... Hey I'm just sayin.

"This cannot be good," Jason muttered.

We landed in what looked like a penthouse suit, but everywhere was frozen. The entry hall had huge vaulted ceilings about forty feet high, with huge draped windows, and lush oriental carpets. There was a long staircase that branched off to the left and right. Jason and Piper slid off the dragon first.

Then Leo. He held his hand out. "M'lady."

I took his hand and slid down, but from the icy carpet I slipped. I felt a strong pair of arms wrap around me and pull me up. I came face to face- literally an inch away from each other's faces- with Leo. My Dragon boy. _Mine._

He noticed how close we were. "Y-you okay?"

I found myself staring into his big brown eyes. "Perfect,"

_Clarity. _Those words hit me like a ton of bricks. A slap in the face. What the girl said at the cabin... Leo's my Clarity. My Clarity. My Leo. _My everything_. God, how cheesy do I sound?

His hot breath hit my face, and all I wanted to do was lean in and kiss him. I almost did if Jason didn't clear his throat. We both blinked and pulled ourselves together, but Leo kept his hand in mine.

I felt a blush creep onto my cheeks when he entangled his fingers with mine.

"Guys," Leo said. "Fix the thermostat in here, and I would totally move in."

"Not me." Jason admitted. "Something feels wrong. Something is up there..."

Festus shuddered and snorted flames. Then frost started to form over his scales.

"No, no, no." Zethes marcher over. "The dragon must be deactivated. We can't have fire in here. The heat ruins my hair."

And of course my ADHD had to kick in with my sarcasm when I blurted out, "Aw boo hoo. You're poor hair will survive. How much hair products do you buy a year exactly?"

Festus agreed with me by growling and he spun his drill-bit teeth.

"'S'okay, boy." Leo turned to Zethes, still keeping a tight grip on my hand. "The dragon's a little touchy about the whole _deactivation _concept. But I've got a better solution."

"Destroy?" Geez, Cal what is up with you and destroying?

"No, man. You gotta stop with the _destroy_ talk. Just wait. " Dragon boy just read my mind.

"Leo," I started to say nervously. "What are you-"

"Watch and learn, Gorgeous. When I was repairing Festus last night, I found all kinds of buttons. Some, you do_ not _want to know what they do. But others... Ah, here we go."

Leo winked at me, before he hooked his fingers behind the dragon's left foreleg and pulled a switch. The dragon shuddered from head to toe and Festus started to fold us like origami. He started to fold into a.. suitcase?

"Leo," I whispered to him, making sure he only heard it. He turned to me, his curls in his face. "You're brilliant."

He winked. "Not to bad yourself, Gorgeous."

I caught Piper smirking at me. _What?_

_Oh, don't give me that! You're totally in lov-_

_Piper_, I stopped her glance before turning mine into a serious one. _He's my Clarity_.

She started to looked between me and Leo. _Seriously?_

I nodded looking back at my Dragon Boy. A_bsolutely_.

Leo walked towards the suitcase and tried to lift it but it probably weighed like six billion pounds. "Um... yeah. Hold on. I think-aha." He pushed another button and a handle flipped on top and wheels clicked out on the bottom. "Ta-da! The world's heaviest carry-on bag!"

I rolled my eyes. _Only Leo._

* * *

**Srry I had to cut it off her but I will write some more tomorrow. And who liked the 'Neo' fluff? I'm not good on shipping names but... here's an idea! And who kinda figured out Leo was Nat's Clarity? If you did all I have to say is, "Good job, dear Watson. You've cracked the case!"**

**M'kay. Bye!**


	7. That Feeling in my Stomach

**I hate Mondays and Tuesdays and Wednesdays and every other week day. Can someone make a shirt for me that says I hate weekdays? I'd appreciate it... And on that note, can anyone draw? If you can could you possible draw like what you picture Nat looking like? Or her and Leo? Because all I have right now are stick figures, one with curly hair, and one with long hair. My awesome artistic skills are all 'bout dem stick figures...**

**Chapter 7: That Feeling in my Stomach**

**Chapter Song: My Sanctuary- Hikaru Utada **

_Wonk uoy naht noitceffa erom deen I. In you and I there's a new land, Angel's in flight, wonk uoy naht noitceffa erom deen I. My sanctuary, my sanctuary, yeah, Where fears and lies melt away. Music will tie, wonk uoy naht noitceffa erom deen I, What's left of me what's left of me now. __I watch you fast asleep, __All I fear means nothing. __In you and I there's a new land, __Angels in flight. Wonk uoy naht noitceffa erom deen I, My sanctuary my sanctuary yeah, Where fears and lies melt away. Music will tie, wonk uoy naht noitceffa erom deen I. What's left of me what's left of me_

* * *

"That's impossible," Jason said, looking bewildered at the suitcase. "Something that big couldn't-"

"Stop!" Zethes ordered. Cal and him both drew their swords and glared at Leo.

My Dragon boy raised his hands. "Okay... what'd I do? Stay calm, guys. If it bothers you that much, I don't _have_ to take the dragon as carry-on-"

"Who are you?" Zethes shoved the point of the sword against Leo's chest. "A child of the South Wing, spying on us?"

"Yo dude!" I yelled standing in front of Leo. "Back the fuck off,"

Leo looked at me and lent down towards my ear. "Nat, I got this."

"He was about to kill you," I whispered back. "What was I supposed to do?"

"Let me get killed if that meant keeping you, safe." He replied before looking back at Zethes and Cal. "And besides I son of Hephaestus. Friendly blacksmith, no harm to anyone!"

Leo pushed me behind him when Cal got all up in his face. "Smell fire, fire is bad."

"Oh," Leo gripped my hand tighter, making me nervous. "Yeah, well... my clothes are kind of singed, and I've been working with oil, and-"

"No!" Zethes pushed the sword point back at Leo. "We can _smell_ fire, demigod. We assumed it was from the creaky dragon, but now the dragon is a suitcase. And I still smell fire... on _you_."

"Hey...look... I don't know-" He started to stutter nervously, and he glanced back at me then to Jason and Piper. "Guys, a little help?"

I noticed Jason already having his gold coin in his hand. "Look, there's been a mistake. Leo isn't a fire guy. Tell them, Leo. Tell them you're not a fire guy."

"Um..." Was all he said. What are you hiding Leo?

I decided to step in. "'Sides, he barely even knows how to light a match."

Leo glared but mouthed a small 'thank you'.

Then my sister stepped in. "Zethes?" She used her dazzling smile this time like I did, but hers was a little bit more convincing. "We're all friends here. Put down your swords and let's talk."

"The girl is pretty," Zethes said, making me growl. No one talks to my sister like that unless its Jason. "And of course she cannot help being attracted to my amazingness; but sadly, I cannot romance her at this time."

His sword kept going into Leo's chest. I saw a light blue color-frost- to go across his chest.

I was about to do something but Leo held me back, as if he didn't want me to do anything.

"Destroy him no?" Over my dead body Cal.

Zethes nodded. "Sadly, I think-"

"No," Jason insisted, sounding super calm. Gee no wonder he's the leader... "Leo's just son of Hephaestus. He's no threat. Piper and Natalia here are daughters of Aphrodite. I'm the son of Zeus. We're on a peaceful..."

His voice faltered because both of Boreas had suddenly turned to him.

"What did you say?" Zethes demanded. "You are the son of Zeus?"

"Um... yeah," Jason said. He kinda just said that. Dummies... "That's a good thing, right? My name is Jason."

Cal looked surprised? "Can't be Jason," he said. "Doesn't look the same."

"No," Zethes stepped forward in Jason's face. "He is not _our_ Jason. Our Jason was more stylish. Not much as me- but stylish. Besides, our Jason died millennium ago."

I had to cover my mouth before I said something. I mean guys who are _stylish_ are either rooting for the other team or has spent years in a house full on women. Hopefully the last choice.

"Wait," Jason said. "_Your_ Jason... you mean the original Jason? The Golden Fleece guy?"

"No, the murdering one," I muttered sarcastically.

"Of course," Zethes said. "We were his crew mates aboard his ship, the _Argo_, in the old times, when we were mortal demigods. Then we accepted immortality to serve our father, so I could look this good for all time, and my sill brother could enjoy pizza and hockey."

Cal nodded. "Hockey!"

Zethes continued, "But Jason- _our _Jason- he died a mortal death. You can't be him."

"I'm not," Jason agreed.

"So, destroy?" No, Cal. We're gonna play hockey!

"No," Zethes said, sounding regretful. "If he is a son of Zeus, he could be the one we've been watching out for."

"Watching for?" Leo asked. "You mean like in a good way: you'll shower him with fabulous prizes? Or watching for like in a bad way: he's in trouble?"

Suddenly a girl's voice said, "That depends on my father's will."

I looked up at the staircase where the voice came from. A girl- well all I'm gonna say was that she basically looked like an ice queen with black hair and brown eyes.

She looked at me, Leo, then Piper and Jason.

"Father will want to see the one called Jason," the girl said.

"Then it _is_ him?" Zethes asked.

"We'll see," said the girl. "Zethes, bring our guests."

Leo went to grab Festus- or the suitcase, but the girl said, "Not you, Leo Valdez."

A voice in my head went, "RED ALERT!" and I agreed with it.

"Why not?" He asked, looking at me in the corner of his eye.

"You cannot be in the presence of my father," Eye roller. "Fire and ice-it would not be wise."

"We're going together," Jason insisted putting a hand on Leo's shoulder, "or not at all."

The girl tilted her head. "He will not be harmed, Jason Grace, unless you make trouble. Calais, keep Leo Valdez here. Guard him, but do not kill him."

Cal pouted. His full name is funny. "Just a little."

"No," the girl insisted. "And take care of his interesting suitcase, until my father passes judgement."

Piper, Jason, and I all exchanged looks with Leo.

"It's fine, guys," he said. "No sense causing trouble if we don't have to. You go ahead."

"Listen you your friend," the girl said. "Leo Valdez will be perfectly safe. I wish I could say the same for you, son of Zeus. Now come, King Boreas is waiting."

Just as I was about to follow Piper and Jason up the icy staircase someone grabbed my arm and pulled me into a warm chest.

I pulled away to look at Leo's concerned face. "Lee," I say using his nickname. "I'll be fine."

"Just," he sighed. "Watch out for that ice girl. And don't miss me too much in all that cold."

"I have a hoodie, I'll be fine." I assured him.

"Just in case," he kissed my check and warmth radiated throughout my body. "Be careful."

I nodded. "I promise. And don't miss me too much."

He chuckled. "I'll try not to."

I walked fast up the staircase to catch up with my friends without tripping. I almost did but luckily there was a railing. Thank the _lawdy. _

I notice the couple in front of me, holding hands.

"It'll be fine," Piper promised him. "Just a talk, right?"

"Hopefully," I grumbled. Forever alone, here.

The girl turned at the top of the stairs and suddenly Piper and Jason's hands spread apart.

"Warmth is not a good idea here," the girl advised, "especially when _I _am your best chance of staying alive. Please, this way."

Where is the forever alone picture when you need it?

I felt something poke my back I turned around to see Zethes. He motioned me to keep walking, so I did.

I touched my check where Leo had kissed it, and felt more warmth spread though my body. I was thankful for that because of the freezing winds.

My hoodie kept my warm but not that warm. Everywhere was just freezing. I had started to notice my hair was going back to it's natural wavy-ness with no curls, and I felt less makeup on my face.

Yes! The blessing is wearing off!

"Hey," I looked over at Jason who looked spaced-out. "You still with us?"

"Yeah... yeah, sorry."

We made it towards the end of the hallway were a set of oaken doors were with a carved map of the world. For some odd reason in each corner there was a man's bearded face, blowing wing.

The girl turned. "This is the throne room," she said. "Be on your best behavior, Jason Grace. My father can be very... chilly. I will translate for you, and try to encourage him to hear you out. I do hope he spares you. We could have so much fun."

Ew, no thank you.

"Um, okay," Jason managed. "But really, we're just here for a little talk. We'll be leaving right afterward."

The girl smiled. "I love heroes. So blissfully ignorant."

My hand went for my dagger, _immediately. _I noticed the Piper did too. "Well, how about you enlighten us? You say you're going to translate for us, and we don't even know who you are."

"What's your name?" I finished for my sister.

The girl sniffed. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised you don't recognize me. Even in the ancient times the Greeks did not know me well. Their island homes were too warm, too far from my domain. I am Khione, daughter of Boreas, goddess of snow."

That explains alot.

She stirred the air around with her finger and a small blizzard swirled around her. Cool, I guess.

"Now, come," Khione said. Once the oaken doors blew open a cold blue light slipped out of the room. "Hopefully you will survive your little talk."

All I'm gonna say is that the throne room is friggin freezing! I can't stand the cold. I need my heater. Where's Leo when you need him? I was seriously thinking of backing out of the room and running to Leo to warm myself up. But no, I followed my sister and stayed in the room.

The throne room had purple tapestries which showed snowy areas, like mountains, forests, and glaciers. Although the nice part I liked was the aurora pulsed along the ceiling. I always loved auroras. On the floor was a layer of snow, and all around the room were life-size ice sculptors of warriors. I bet those are real people. The statues suddenly crossed javelins to block our path.

I noticed at the far end of the hall was a man's voice in French. I could barely see because of all the mist and the statues. Then the uncrossed their weapons.

"It's fine," Khione said. "My father has ordered them not to kill you just yet."

"Super," Jason said sarcastically.

Zethes, who was still behind us, prodded us in the back with a sword. "Keep moving, Jason Junior, and pretty girl."

"Please don't call me that." Jason said.

"My father is not a patient man," Zethes warned, "and the beautiful Piper, sadly, is losing her magic hairdo very fast. So is Natalia. Later, perhaps, I can lend them something from my wide assortment of hair products."

I knew it! He does use alot of hair products.

"Thanks," Me and my sister both grumbled.

When we reached the end of the hall, a man sat on an ice throne. He was dressed in a white suit that looked like snow, with dark purple wings that spread out on either side. He had long hair and a shaggy beard which were encrusted with icicles. His eyebrows were arched and his eyes twinkled a little more warmer than Khione's. So that's the king...

"_Bienvenu_," the king said. "_Je suis Boreas le Roi. Et vous_?"

I could understand what he just said. Is that bad?

My sister stepped foward and curtsied. "_Votre Majeste,_ _je suis Piper Mclean. Et c'est Jason, fils de Zeus._"

The king turned to me. "_Et vous, ma chère?_"

I stepped up next to my sister and also curtsied. "_Pardonnez-moi Votre Majesté, je suis Natalia McLean, soeur de Piper._"

The king smiled. "_Vous parlez le français? Très bon!_"

"Piper, Nat, you two speak French?" Jason asked.

I turned my head. "Do what now?"

"No. Why?" My sister asked for both of us.

"You two just spoke French." Jason stated.

I blinked. "I- we did?"

The king said something else and both me and Piper nodded. "_Oui, Votre Majesté._"

He laughed and clapped his his hands and started to saw a few more sentences I couldn't make out, but I could understand every word in my head. How is that possible?

Khione looked miffed. "The king says-"

"He says we're daughters of Aphrodite," Piper interrupted.

I continued, "So naturally we can speak French, which is the language of love. _Bleak,_ but I had no freakin' clue."

Piper nodded. "His Majesty says Khione won't have to translate now."

Zethes snorted and Khione shot him a murderous look making me chuckle. Khione bowed to her father and took a step back. Haha you're not special anymore!

Then Jason bowed. "Your Majesty, I'm Jason Grace. Thank you for, um, not killing us. May I ask... why does a Greek god speak French?"

I whispered to Piper, "You got the translating thingy?"

She nodded. "Mhmm."

Piper exchanged looks with the king. "He speaks the language of his host country," she translated. "He says all gods do this. Most Greek gods speak English, as they now reside in the United States, but Boreas was never welcomed in their realm. His domain was always far to the north. These days he likes Quebec, so he speaks French."

And then the king said something else that I _could_ understand. Piper turned pale, and I probably did too.

"The king says..." She faltered. "He says-"

"Oh, allow me," You know who you remind me of Khione? Drew. "My father says he has orders to kill you. Did I not mention that earlier?"

Oh shit doodles.

I tensed up, along with Jason, and I gripped Piper's shoulder.

"Kill us?" Jason said. "Why?"

"Because," Wow, the Boreas has a really heavy accent. "My lord Aeolus has commanded it."

I kept my mouth shut from saying something smart.

The king rose, stepping down from his throne, and furled his purple wings against his back. He approached us, and Khione and Zethes bowed. Jason, Piper, and I all followed their example.

"I shall design to speak your language," Boreas said, "as Piper and Natalia McLean has honored me in mine. _Toujours_, I have had a fondness for the children of Aphrodite. As for you, Jason Grace, my master Aeolus would not except me to kill a son of Lord Zeus... without first hearing you out."

**LEO VALDEZ P.O.V.**

I started to pace around. What if she's hurt? What if he already killed them? What if-

"Stop pacing!" Cal ordered.

I didn't say anything because I knew he couldn't understand what it felt like to watch the girl you've had a crush on walk into a danger zone. I knew why I couldn't go, because I'm heat. And I can make flames.

Natalia knew I was hiding something, and with her 'Batman' instincts I'm pretty sure she could figure it out. Then the thoughts of Nat being hurt flooded through my mind.

"Pretty girl fine," Cal said. "I think."

My mouth was still kept shut. I looked over at Festus who was in his regular form, and patted his head. I could tell he was cold. So was I.

I kept eyeing the stairs too, just to see if Nat was still there. After I made my move and kissed her check, I couldn't get her blushing face from out of my mind. Her blessing thing was starting to wore off and she started to look like my Natalia again.

But then, something else bothered me. And it wasn't the fact that I was now clean, and freezing cold. It was the fact that every time I made a small glance to Nat, something in my stomach pulled me towards her as if my life depended on it. Now, I fell for every pretty girl I saw but Nat? It was totally different. I don't think it was the Aphrodite blessing because I could still feel it.

Everytime I would met those beautiful color-changing eyes, my heart would stop, hell the _world_ would stop. And I just wanted to stay there forever. I only have two solutions for this: One would be I'm falling for her hard, or two it's some weird Aphrodite thing. I'm gonna go with option number one...

Then I looked over and saw Nat. She was herself again. Her chocolate brown hair was down to it's natural wavy-ness, and some of the makeup wore off. I met her eyes, and it looked like she wanted to run into my arms, but she never did. I could tell she was freezing and she for some reason kept her head down.

At the bottom of the steps, Khione turned to Piper. "You have fooled my father, girl. You and your sister both. But you have not fooled me. We are not done. And you, Jason Grace, I will see you as a statue in the throne room soon enough."

"Boreas is right," Still can't get over that name. "You're a spoiled kid. See you around, ice princess."

I saw Khione's eye flared pure white, and when she went halfway up the stairs she turned into a blizzard and disappeared.

"Be careful," Zethes warned. "She never forgets and insult."

Cal grunted in agreement. "Bad sister."

"She's the goddess of snow," Jason said. "What's she going to do, throw snowballs at us?"

Then I looked over at Nat, who was breathing a little hard, and her breath was cold. I met her eyes again. Now she wanted to jump in my arms. I nodded and held my arms wide open.

She pushed past Zethes, and Cal, and jumped into my arms flinging her arms around my neck.

"God Nat," I breathed wrapping my arms around her waist. "You're freezing."

"A-and is that supposed to make me feel better?" She asked sill cold.

I chuckled. "I guess."

"S-shut it V-Valdez." I held her tighter, trying to warm her up.

Piper was eyeing me, giving me the look, _If you hurt my sister I'll kill you slowly but painfully._ I nodded and smiled nervously gently stroking Nat's hair.

"What happened up there?" I asked, as Natalia placed her head on my chest.

"We'll explain later," Piper promised, and glanced at Jason probably expecting him to explain.

Jason looked away from Piper. "Yeah," he agreed. "We'll explain."

"Be careful pretty girls," I felt a little growl rising from my chest. Wow where'd that come form? "The winds between here and Chicago are bad-tempered. Many other evil things are stirring. I am sorry you will not be staying. You two would make a lovely ice statue, in which I could check my reflection."

"Thanks," Piper said.

"But, I think we'd soon play hockey with Cal." Nat said.

"Hockey?" Cal's eyes light up.

Nat shoke her head. "Sorry big guy. And what do you mean, when storm winds aren't our worst problem?"

"It's something worse," Zethes said.

"Worse," Cal echoed.

She turned to him and gave him a smile. "Can you tell me?" But this time it didn't work, but it sure as hell worked on me.

"Ask Aeolus what is worse," Zethes darkly said. "He knows. Good luck."

Cal patted my shoulder. "Don't get destroyed. Next time- hockey. Pizza."

"Come on, guys." Jason said walking towards Festus who was anxiously waiting to fly. "Let's go to Chicago and try not to get destroyed."

Piper and Jason started to chat climbing onto the dragon, after Cal and Zethes left.

"Are you warm enough?" I asked Nat.

She kissed my check. "Yep. Thanks Lee."

"N-no problem." And here comes that feeling again. If only she kissed- never mind. It probably won't happen. Unless I tell her. Should I tell her?

* * *

**AWW! Neo fluff! I ship these two now. I'm gonna find a person to make a poster that says, "NEO FTW!" or something like that. Anyways sorry it was kinda short but I had already wrote half of this chapter yesterday, so I decided to finish it since I had no homework. Yeah me!**

**Who liked the Leo's P.O.V.? I thought it was kinda cute. :3 Leo's finally realizing that he should follow that feeling he gets when he's around Nat. Who want's some more chapters in Lee's P.O.V.? If you do, just review and tell me or PM me. Either way...**

**M'kay. Bye!**


	8. Festus Crashes

**Wazzup? Hope you guys are doing well... although aside from the fact that my mom won't get paid because of the government, I'm not doing so well. My mom might lose her job, and my dad had the awesome idea of moving to Bath, England, away from all this government shit. So... yeah. **

**And on a more happy note, thanks a million for the reviews! And too Flame on, I'm sorry that they're moving kinda of fast, but it's just because I completely forgot in which part Festus crashes. I thought it was towards the middle-endish, so sorry about that. **

**Chapter 8: Festus Crashes**

**Chapter Song: If I'm James Dean, You're Audrey Hepburn- Sleeping with Sirens (acoustic)**

_They say that love is forever, Your forever is all that I need. Please stay as long as you need. Can't promise that things won't be broken, but I swear that I will never leave. Please stay forever with me. It goes to show, I hope that you know that you are what my dreams are made of. Can't fall asleep, can't fall asleep, I lay in my bed awake, in my bed awake at night, as I dream of you. I'll fall in love, you'll fall in love, It could mean everything, everything to me. I can't imagine being anywhere else._

* * *

"You were amazing," Jason said to Piper. "You too, Nat."

"Why thank you, _monsieur Jason_." I smirked. Leo looked over at me with a confused expression, but I sent him, _I'll tell you later._

Then Piper said to Jason in French: "If you knew the truth about me, you would think I was so amazing."

Woah, hold up. What does she mean? What is Piper hiding from me?

But, I kept my mouth shut.

"What'd you say?" Jason asked.

"I said I only talked to Boreas. It wasn't so amazing."

"Hey," he said, "you saved me from joining Khione's subzero hero collection. I owe you one."

I grumbled, "I helped a little bit too, you know."

Piper was eyeing me. _Nat, I... I need to tell you something but... don't freak out._

_Freak out_? I snorted. _How could I possibly freak out_?

She sighed. _I think it would be better if I could talk to you alone._

_Gotcha_.

Leo passed us some sandwiches from his pack, while I leaned against his shoulder. "I knew she was evil. But she looked sorta nice."

"Trust me, man," Jason said. "Snow may be pretty, but up close it cold and nasty."

Everyone went silent after that. Then Piper fell asleep on Jason and I poked his shoulder.

I asked him the most basic question I'd been dying to know. "Do you like Piper?"

He blushed, and looked at the sleeping figure next to him. "I don't know."

"She likes you, still." I said. "The way she looks at you it's... it's cute."

"Woah, Nat's going girly-girl?" Leo said, pretending to be shocked. "I thought I never see the day."

I ignored his comment and looked back at Jason. "So you really don't remember anything that went on between you two?"

"No," he said. "But I wish I did. I-I mean just-"

"You like her but it's not because of the Aphrodite thing, but you want to know her a little bit better?" I suggested.

He sighed. "Yeah, basically."

"Well when you're ready to talk to her... just do don't anything stupid." I said before snuggling up to Leo and falling asleep myself.

It felt like the last time I slept except when I woke up I was free-falling through the air. And that's when I screamed.

"Natalia!" I heard my sister scream. I saw that she was also falling, and above her was Jason. Wait where's Leo?

"Leo!" I shouted. Although I could barely hear my own voice. Falling. That's what was happening right? I was falling? It felt so weird, like everything inside me was jell-o and that I had this huge scared feeling in my stomach. Above me I saw Jason... flying? He can fly. Jason can friggin' fly.

I suddenly heard an explosion and then a fireball rolled into the sky. At first I kinda like falling. Until I hit the ground. And it hurt. Bad. But no. It wasn't the ground, it was a roof. And I fell through it. Okay ground hurts, metal hurts, roof hurts, everything fucking hurts! But mostly my hand, which I fell on.

"Piper! Where's Piper!" I heard Jason's voice echo through.

"Ow, bro!" Leo groaned. Oh thank god. Leo's okay. "That's my back! I'm not a sofa! Piper- wait, where's Nat? Nat? Natalia!"

"Leo! Leo stop!" Jason yelled, as footsteps started coming towards me.

"No!" I heard Leo shout back as the footsteps stopped. "She's out there! I have to find her! Let me go Jason!"

Despite the screams of my name being called I looked around where I was. It looked like abandoned warehouse with broke lightbulbs dangling from the ceiling. Half-finished trucks, and other machinery parts were on an assembly line.

"Nat?" I heard someone croak out.

My eyes snapped to where the voice came from. Piper. Her foot- oh god her foot, was it supposed to point out like that? I was kinda far from her, but I could make it.

I went to stand up, and my legs were like, "NOPE!" but I managed to keep my wobbling balance. I went move my hands but that almost made me scream. Once I made it to my sister I fell down on the ground next to her.

"Are you okay?" She asked.

"My wrist is broken," I inform her. I looked at my wrist again, and it looked all deformed and broken. Nasty.

"Nat, we could find you. What happened?"

I shrugged. "I have no idea."

And that's when Jason and Leo reached us. I looked up and the first face I saw was Leo's. It looked like he was crying, dirt was also on his face.

"You're okay," he finally breathed out. I couldn't take it. I went up and wrapped my arms around his neck and shoved my face in the crook of his neck, embracing his warmth. I ignored the pain in my wrist. He was more important right now. Leo instantly wrapped his arms around me, pulling me even closer to him.

"Nat, I was _so_ worried. I-I thought that..." his voice trailed off.

"I'm not," I promised, cupping his face in my hand and pressing my forehead against his. "I'm here, and okay."

"No you're not," Jason said looking at my hand. "It's broken."

Leo's voice became frantic. "What's broken? Where?"

I winced as I pulled my hand away from Leo's neck. "My wrist. I think it's broken."

Then I pointed to Piper's foot. "She's not okay though,"

My sister groaned. "Thanks for the reassurance."

"You'll be fine," Jason said, his voice full of worry. "Leo, you got any first aid supplies for them?"

He nodded. "Yeah-yeah, sure." He started to dig around in his tool belt, and pulled out a wad of gauze and some duct tape, which were kinda big to fit in a small pockets of a tool belt. And the weirdest part, it looked empty.

"How did you-" Piper started trying to sit up, but winced in the process.

"How did you pull that stuff from an empty belt?" I finished.

"Magic," Leo flashed one his famous smiles. "Haven't figure it out completely, but I can summon just about any regular tool out of the pockets, plus some other helpful stuff." He pulled out a tiny box. "Breath mint?"

Jason snatched the mints away. "That's great, Leo. Now, can you fix her foot, and Nat's hand?"

"I'm a mechanic, man. Maybe if they were a car..." He suddenly snapped his fingers. "Wait, what was the godly healing stuff they fed you at camp-Rambo food?"

I rolled my eyes. "Ambrosia, dummy."

"There should be some in my bag, if it's not crushed." Piper said.

Carefully, Jason pulled her backpack off my sister's shoulder and rummaged through the bag. He pulled out a Ziploc full of smashed squares like lemon bars. He broke of two pieces and fed it to us.

Oh lawdy. The taste. Ever been to the fair and the warm, fluffy cotton candy that you bought for like a dollar? That's the taste. My dad used to buy it for me all the time, even when we couldn't go to the fair. It's warm sweet taste made me wanting more.

"More," Me and Piper both said.

Jason frowned. "Guys, we shouldn't risk it. They said too much could burn you up. I think I should try to set your foot. And Nat, try to move you're wrist, and make little circle motions."

"Have you ever done that before? Set a person's foot I mean."

"Yeah... I think so."

Leo found an old piece of wood and broke it half, then he got the gauze and duct tape ready.

"Hold her leg still," Jason told me and Leo. "Piper this is going to hurt."

My sister gripping my 'okay' hand when he set her foot. So basically, my hand almost broke off. But if it helped my sister, it's fine.

"Ow,"

I rubbed my hand. "Jeez, sis. You got a good grip."

"Sorry," she apologized.

"You guys did great." Jason gave her a canteen which had water in it. I started to move my 'bad' around in circular motions, like Jason said. It was a little numb but I'll be able to use it.

"What happened to the dragon?" Piper asked. "Where are we?"

Leo's expression turned sullen. "I don't know what happened with Festus. He just jerked sideways like he hit an invisible wall and started to fall." He pointed to a logo on the wall. It was kinda creepy with the monocle monsters and the _single_ red eye. "As far as where we are..."

I looked at the logo, but it was kinda hard to look at with all the graffiti.

"Closed car plant," Leo said. "I'm guessing we crash-landed in Detroit."

"How far is that from Chicago?" My sister questioned.

"Maybe three-foryths of the way from Quebec? The thing is, without the dragon, we're stuck traveling overland."

Leo shoke his head. "No way, it isn't safe."

I nodded in agreement. "He's right, and 'sides we dunno if Piper can walk."

"And four people- Jason, you can't fly that many across country by yourself." Piper said.

"Now way," Jason said. "Leo, are you sure the dragon didn't malfunction? I mean Festus is old, and-"

Leo interrupted, "And I might not have repaired him right?"

"I didn't say that," Jason protested. "It's just-maybe you could fix it."

"I don't know." Leo's voice sounded crestfallen. He started fiddling with screws and bolts that he pulled from his tool belt. "I'd have to find where he landed, if he's even in one piece."

"It was my fault." Piper said.

I looked over at her. "Pipes, no it's not."

"You were asleep when Festus conked out," Jason added. "It couldn't be your fault."

"Yeah," Leo agreed. "You're just shaken up, and you're in pain. Just rest."

Then he stood up, "Look, um, Jason, why don't you say with them, bro? I'll scout around for Festus. I think he fell outside the warehouse somewhere. If I can find him, maybe I can figure out what happened and fix him."

"It's too dangerous," Jason said. "You shouldn't go by yourself."

"Ah, I got duct tape and breath mints. I'll be fine," He said that a little bit too quickly, I knew he was still shaken up. "You guys just don't run off without me."

I stood up as well. "I'm coming with you. And don't tell me to stay here, because you know I won't."

Leo sighed. "Okay, just stay close to me."

"Sis," I turned to Piper. She smirked. _Go get him._

I felt a blush rising to my checks, as Leo pulled out a flashlight from his magic tool belt, and we walked downstairs. But this was no blushing matter, this was about Leo.

* * *

**Here it comes! The part everyone has been waiting for and I know it's early and again I apologize, but it's here! And sorry it's a little short, the online book was glitching out on me, so I had to restart to computer a couple times, but I got back to working! So the next chapter will be out quickly! I'm squealing over here...**

**M'kay. Bye!**


	9. I Do Care, More Than You Know

**Do you know how many songs I had to listen to, to find the right one for this chapter? Like twenty! And when I found the right one, I just started squealing and just smiling my face off. I hope, **_**I really hope**_** you like this chapter. And if you don't I'm deeply and truly sorry. **

**Chapter 9: I Do Care, More Than You Know**

**Chapter Song: Distance- Christina Perri**

_The sun is filling up the room, and I can hear you dreaming. Do you feel the way I do right now? I wish we would just give up, cause the best part is falling. Call it anything but love, and I will make sure to keep my distance. Say, "I love you," when you're not listening, and how long can we keep this up, up, up? Please don't stand so close to me, I'm having trouble breathing. I'm afraid of what you'll see right now, I give you everything I am. All my broken heart beats, Until I know you'll understand. And I will make sure to keep my distance, say, "I love you," when you're not listening. And how long can we keep this up, up, up? And I keep waiting, for you to take me. You keep waiting, to save what we have. So I'll make sure to keep my distance say, "I love you," when you're not listening. And how long can we keep this up, up, up? Make sure to keep my distance, say, "I love you," when you're not listening. How long 'til we call this love, love, love?_

* * *

**LEO VALDEZ P.O.V.**

Why, in all the places did Festus have to land on the toilets? I mean seriously?

"Well, that's comforting." Nat said.

I chuckled. "I know,"

I started to climb over my dragon's inanimate body. There's nothing wrong with him! What the frickey frick then?

"Not my fault," I muttered. "Festus, you're making me look bad."

Nat climbed over towards me. "Is he gonna be okay?"

I shrugged. "I'm not sure." I opened the control panel on his head, and my heart sank. "Oh, Festus, what the heck?"

The wiring... it was frozen over, and it caused the wiring to overload and char the control disk. I'm pretty sure I can replace the wires with my awesome tool belt, but the control disk wasn't good.

This was one piece of hardware I couldn't replace- and it was damaged. _Again_.

_Most problems look worse than they are, _mijo. _Nothing is __unfixable_. I would imagine my mom's voice say.

"Lee," I looked at Natalia through my curly hair. "Are you okay? You can tell me anything, you know that right?"

I nodded, and she crouched in front of me. "Just... just don't hate me after I tell you all of this."

Her eyes bored into mine. "I promise,"

There it is again. That feeling, it's like pulling me towards her as if my life depended on it.

"And... when I'm fixing Festus just don't freak out... okay?"

"Okay," she promised. Here goes nothing.

"Gimme a nylon bristle detail brush, some nitrile gloves, and maybe a can of that aerosol cleaning solvent." The tool belt obliged and I pulled out the supplies.

I started to clean off the control disk, and then when I noticed the snow collecting on top of Festus. I looked at Nat, "Don't freak out," I repeated.

She nodded unsure. I took a long breath and summoned fire, and there it was dancing across my palms. I melted the snow off and snapped my gaze back to Nat, who wasn't scared or even freaking out.

"You," she breathed out. "Can summon fire?"

"Yeah," I nodded.

She smiled. "That is completely badass."

I let go a sigh of relief as we burst into laughter. I started to continue working on Festus again, and I found myself saying my thoughts out loud to Nat, who didn't seem to mind. I actually liked having her here with me. It assured me, back when we crashed and I didn't see her, I was completely freaking out. She was the only girl I could talk to, and she would listen. She was the only girl who I would make corny, stupid jokes to and she would laugh even if they weren't funny. She was the only girl that saw me for who I was and not some curly-haired, elfish looking, weirdo.

"So why would were scared to tell us- or even me, about you're fire power?" she asked.

"Well, in the prophecy it says, _To storm of fire the world must fall_, and it's like, _Hey, guess what, guys! I might destroy the world!_ and who would welcome me back at camp? I would have to-" I stopped myself.

"Lee," I had to look at her this time. "You're not dangerous, and what did you mean? You have to what?"

I sighed. I trust Natalia, more than anything now. "When I was little, getting frozen out was the story of my life. By relatives, fosters homes, everything. Even at the Wilderness School, when you went there I felt like a third wheel. But then you were there all the time, and I felt I was needed." Then I shoke my head, "Enough Valdez, nobody's going to play violins for you just because you're not important. Fix the stupid dragon."

Nat stayed quiet, obviously not knowing what to say.

_You're wrong, Leo,_ a voice said, and it wasn't Nat.

The brush I had in my hand dropped into the dragon's head. Then I heard Natalia gasp. She was pointing to a ten-foot-wide area that formed eyes, a nose, and a mouth- a giant face of a sleeping woman.

"Leo, what is that?"

I didn't answer. Because the voice was talking in my head.

_They need you desperately, especially the Aphrodite girl you're so in love with,_ she said. _In some ways, you are the most important of the eight- like the control disk in the dragon's brain/ Without you, the power of the others means nothing. They will never reach me, never stop me. And I will fully awake._

No. No way. I fucking hate this lady! She was the earthen lady from the machine shop. "You." I was shaking pretty badly. "You killed my mom."

Nat's eyes went wide. "Oh my god,"

Then the face shifted to a form a sleepy smile, as if it was having a pleasant dream. _Ah, but Leo. I am your mother too- the First Mother. Do not oppose me. Walk away now. Let my son Porphyrin rise and become king, and I will ease your burdens. You will tread lightly on the earth._

I grabbed the nearest thing I could find- which was a Porta-Potty seat- and threw it at the face. "Leave me alone!"

The object I threw sank into the liquid earth, and the snow and sludge around it rippled and the face dissolved.

I stared at the ground, waiting for the freakin' face to reappear. I felt someone next to me, wrap their arms around me. And that's when I almost broke down. A couple tears spilled from my face as I let Nat comfort me.

She sat me down next to where I was working on the dragon. "That was your babysitter, huh?"

I nodded. "She killed my mom. She caused a fire, and my mom was still inside. It's my fault, I could've stopped it."

"Leo," she pleaded. "It's not your fault."

"Yeah, like how being the third wheel, and not important is too."

"I think you're important,"

"No you don't. You're just saying that just to make feel better."

"Leo!" Nat yelled, pulling my chin so I was looking straight at her. "I do care about you, more than you know. You're my best friend. And... and I-I-"

I cut her off by pressing my chapped lips to hers.

**NATALIA MCLEAN'S P.O.V**

Kissing Leo... it's like... like opening you're presents one Christmas day. The butterflies in my stomach grew higher and higher and I felt my heartbeat thump louder and louder against my chest. But then there was this like... fiery passion in the kiss that I never wanted to let go. It was either Leo's fire or the Clarity thing. Probably both.

I raised my hand to place it on the back of Leo's neck, fisting his curly hair and the other on his chest. Leo at first was surprised by my actions, but wrapped one hand around my waist and the other behind my head, threading his fingers through my hair.

Neither of us wanted to pull away. And that's when, deciding to be bold, I tilted my head to deepen the kiss even more. Leo smirked and pulled himself closer to me.

Air became an issue for both of us, and we both slowly pulled away. I slowly opened my eyes and peaked throw my eyelashes to met with his loving brown eyes and his famous smile.

"Could I uh, kiss you again?" he whispered, cupping my face.

I nodded. "You don't have to ask anymore,"

He leaned in a kissed me with as much passion as before. I smiled and kissed back wrapping both of my arms around his neck, pulling _him_ closer to me. Leo's hand traveled from my face, down my neck, my stomach and finally rested at my hips and squeezed them tightly.

My head became dizzy from the lack of oxygen or probably from my head screaming "You're kissing Leo!", so I pulled away first but kept my arms wrapped around him.

Leo's warm breath hit my face as he smirked, and pecked my lips once more. "I can't believe I waited this long to do that."

I giggled. "And how long was that?"

"Well, I was planning to do it after Jason got the courage to kiss Piper, but you were off with that one blonde chick."

"Oh yeah, Jenny. Sorry."

"Hey," he kissed my check. "I think this moment right here was more special."

I nodded. "Yeah, right on top of a dragon surrounded by broken Porta-Pottys."

He rubbed the back of his neck. "So, um... would you like to be my... uh... girlfriend? I mean that's cool if you don't want to and the kiss was just only fantastic for me-"

I rolled my eyes, pulled his collar towards me and kissed him. And then pulled away, still keeping a hold of his collar. "Does that answer your question Valdez?"

"Very much so." He leaned forward to kiss me, but we heard a loud crash. Piper. Jason. In trouble.

"Not likely," I heard Leo growl. "Gimme the biggest hammer you got."

I pulled out _Falcata_, right before Leo pulled out a three-pound club hammer with a double faced head which was the size of a bake potato. He grabbed my hand and we jumped off the dragon's back. Then we ran toward the warehouse.

When we reached the door, I tried to control my breathing. Then I noticed Leo looking down.

"Hey, don't let the old lady face get to you, okay?" I kissed his check and opened the door. Nothing seemed different. But the smell. It smelt like motor oil and sour breath.

Leo gripped my hand tighter, and I could tell his nerves were tingling.

"Nat, Leo, help!" I heard Piper cry out.

Ha! I've known that voice for years, and it doesn't sound like her. I gripped _Falcata_ tighter as I worked my way through boxes towards the center of the room, with Leo right behind me. Once I finally reached the assembly there was a crane with a robotic arm.

"Leo? Nat?" The voice sounded less certain but very close.

Leo crouched down next to me, and peeked around the machinery. Hanging directly above the assembly line was a massive truck engine, just dangling up there like a free fairy. Then below it was a truck chassis with three clustered dark shapes surrounded it. Nearby, dangling from chains on two other robotic arms, were two smaller shapes, but they moved around as if it was alive.

Then one of the forklift shapes rose, and it didn't look like a person.

"Told you it was nothing," the thing rumbled. It's voice was way too deep to be human.

The other forklift sized lump shifted and when it spoke it sounded like my sister: "Leo, Nat, help me! Help-" then the voice changed becoming a masculine snarl. "Bah, there's nobody out there. No demigod could be that quiet, eh?"

The first monster chuckled. "Both probably ran away, if they know what's good for 'em. Or the girl was lying about a third and fourth demigod. Let's get cooking."

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**Sorry I had to cut it off here, I just wanted to hear your feedback on this chapter. Good? Bad? Too mushey? Please say!**

**M'kay. Bye!**


	10. Cyclopes are Very Creepy

**Hi guys! Sorry I haven't updated, it's just been a bad week... I don't wanna talk about it. Oh and for Gabsters: Taco cat. And to everyone else who reviewed, *cue perv face* you guys liked that last chappie, huh? And one last shout out to TheOneWhoReviews, I really appreciate you liking my story and how'd you stayed up to read it! I feel loved. :3 but seriously, I just thank you, SO MUCH! From the bad week I've been having you guys just lift my spirits, seriously. **

**Another thing I haven't said in a while is, I don't own this! It's mostly Rick Riordan and me. So yeah...**

**Chapter 10: Cyclopes are Very Creepy...**

**Chapter Song: Better Than Better Could Be- Stephen Jerzak ft. Cady Groves**

_And there's so many fish in the sea, but we could float if that's what you want. Oh, 'cause baby you seem too good to me, I don't want to know what what life would be. If you ever wanted to go, 'cause they're throwing us lemons. And we're squeezing them into our cups, whoa, and drinking it up. Boy you got just what I want, I'm not going a place without your heart, whoa. And girl you're my sun-shiny day, you'd take my life away. If you ever wanted to go._

* * *

_Snap._ A bright orange light met my face- it was an emergency flare. I covered my face, and Leo moved us to behind the crane.

Something told me to look up, and I saw something I never thought I'd see. Dangling from the crane arms was Jason and Piper. They hung upside down, tied by their ankles, and chains were almost up to their necks. My sister was flailing around, like she was trying to free herself. Her mouth was gagged too. Then my eyes flickered to Jason, who didn't look so good. He wasn't really moving around like Piper, and he a red welt the size of an apple over his eyebrow. Ouch...

Leo nudged me, and I followed his gaze to the conveyor belt, where an unfinished pickup truck was being used as a fire pit. The emergency flare ignited a mixture of wood and tires. And they were probably doused in kerosene because of the smell. I looked up over the pit and saw a big metal pole that was suspended over the flames.

"Nat," Leo met my eyes. "The cooks, they're Cyclopes."

I looked over and sure enough, the cooks were Cyclopes. The largest one was crouched down with his back to us. The other two were facing him and were at least ten feet tall, with hairy muscular bodies and skin that glowed red in the firelight. One of the freaky monsters wore a chain mail loincloth, and the other wore a ragged fuzzy toga made of fiberglass insulation. They looked like twins.

I felt someone's arm slipping around my waist and pulling me close.

I looked up at Leo. "Tryin' to make another move on me, Valdez?"

He smiled, and gave me a soft peck on the side of my lips. "Two, actually."

Was he teasing me? Oh, lawd...

Even when we encounter freaky, flesh-and-blood, ten-foot-tall, monsters he still want's to make a move. _Only Leo._

The Cyclops with the chain mail loincloth walked over to my sister, who tried to headbutt him in the eye. "Can I take her gag off now? I like it when they scream."

My ADHD made me blurt out, "That's what _he_ said."

Leo smirked, and covered his mouth to muffle his laugh.

The monster in front of us, who was apparently the leader, grunted and the monster in front of Piper, ripped off the gag. She didn't scream, and instead she took a shaky breath trying to be calm.

I leaned over to my boyfriend. Heh, my _boyfriend_. "What's the plan, Lee?"

He whispered in my ear, "I'm going to find the maintenance panel. Just, watch my back."

"Whatever you say, Dragon boy."

"Okay," he smirked. "Gorgeous."

I stuck my tongue out at him, and followed him around to the side of the robotic crane. He pulled out a screwdriver from his belt and slowly went to work. I kept my grip on _Falcata_, and peered over Leo's shoulder as he worked.

The Cyclops in the toga poked at the fire, as the one in the loincloth dude glowered at my sister. "Scream, girl! I like funny screaming."

When Piper finally spoke, I wanted to laugh at her calm and reasonable voice. "Oh, Mr. Cyclops, you don't want to kill us. It would be much better if you let us go."

Loincloth dude scratched his head, and turned to the fiberglass toga dude. "She's kind of pretty, Torque. Maybe I should let her go."

Yeah, let my sister go along with Jason.

The dude in the toga, Torque I guess, growled. "I saw her first, Sump. _I'll_ let her go!" The two monsters started to argue, then the other Cyclops rose and shouted, "Fools!"

My eyes widened at the third Cyclops. It was a female. She was a couple feet taller than the other two monsters. She wore a tent of chain mail... what are those called again? Muumuu? I think, I remember one of my dad's movies having one of the chicks wearing one of those. The Cyclops lady had black greasy hair that was put into pigtails, woven with copper wires and metal washers. And the part that made me shudder, she had a single red eye.

She stalked over to Sump and pushed him aside onto the conveyor belt. "The girl is Venus spawn," the lady Cyclops snarled. "She's using charmspeak on you."

"Please, ma'am-" My sister started.

"Rarr!" The monster interrupted, grabbing my sister's waist. "Don't try your pretty talk on me, girl! I'm Ma Gasket! I've eater heroes tougher than you for lunch!"

Sister protection mode is starting to kick in. I was about to walk forward, but Leo wrapped his arm around me and pulled me back.

"Nat," Leo whispered in my ear. "I'm almost finished, just wait."

I looked at him, and sighed. "Hurry Lee,"

He smirked. "Yes ma'am."

The lady Cyclops, Ma Gasket, dropped Piper and just let her dangle from the chain. She turned to the two other Cyclops and started to yell at them.

I turned back to Leo who was working furiously, twisting wires, turning switches and then he attached the remote. He grabbed my hand and we crept over to the robotic arm, while the Cyclopes were talking.

"-eat her last, Ma?" I heard Sump say.

"Idiot!" Ma Gasket yelled. "I should've thrown you out on the streets when you were babies, like _proper_ Cyclops children. You might have learned some useful skills. Curse my soft heart that I kept you!"

Can Cyclops have children?

"Soft heart?" I heard Torque mutter.

Ma turned to him. "What was that, you ingrate?"

"Nothing, Ma. I said you got a soft heart. We get to work for you, feed you, file your toenails-"

"And you should be grateful!" Ma Gasket bellowed. "Now, stoke the fire, Torque! And Sump, you idiot, my case of salsa is in the other warehouse. Don't tell me you except me to eat these demigods without salsa!"

"Yes, Ma," Sump said. "I mean no, Ma. I mean-"

"Go get it!" Ma picked up a nearby truck chassis and slammed it over her son's head. He crumpled to his knees. He managed to push off the chassis of his head, staggered to his feet, and ran to get his mother's salsa.

I whispered to Leo, "Now, they're all separated."

Leo, as fast as he could, wired the second machine and moved to the third. Thank god the Cyclopes didn't see us but my sister did. Her expression turned from terror to disbelief and she gasped.

Suddenly Ma Gasket turned to her. "What's the matter girl? So fragile I broke you?"

Good thing my sister is a quick thinker. She looked away from us. "I think it's my ribs, ma'am/ If I'm busted up inside, I'll taste terrible."

The lady Cyclops bellowed with laughter. "Good one. The last hero we ate- remember him, Torque? Son of Mercury, wasn't he?"

"Yes, Ma," Torque responded. "Tasty. Little bit stringy."

"He tried a trick like that. She he was on medication. Be he tasted fine!" Ma said.

"Tasted like mutton," her son recalled. "Purple shirt. Talked in Latin. Yes, a bit stringy, but good."

Wait a minute... Jason's wearing a purple shirt. And he speaks in Latin. I'm not sure if he tastes stringy but...

"Purple shirt?" My sister asked. "Latin?"

"Good eating," Ma Gasket said fondly. "Point is, girl, we're not as dumb as people think! We're not falling for those stupid tricks and riddles, not us northern Cyclopes."

I exchanged glances with Leo, and I knew he was thinking the same thing I was. Whoever the last demigod was, must've been like Jason.

My boyfriend summoned some wires, a smaller screwdriver, and a radio adapter, and he started to build a universal remote.

I'm gonna say this now, my boyfriend is amazing. He really is.

As Lee worked, my sister kept talking. "Oh, I've heard about the northern Cyclopes! I never knew you were so big and clever!"

"Flattery won't work either," Oh well, she tried. "It's true, you'll be breakfast for the best Cyclopes around.

"But aren't Cyclopes good?" Piper asked. "I thought you made weapons for the gods."

"Bah! I'm very good." Lies! "Good at eating people." Oh... never mind. "Good at smashing. And good at building things, yes, but not for the gods. Our cousins, the elder Cyclopes, they do this, yes. Thinking they're so high and mighty 'cause they're a few thousand years older. Then there's our southern cousins, living on islands and tending sheep. Morons! But we Hyperborean Cyclopes, the northern clan, we're the best! Founded Monocle Motors in this old factory-the best weapons, armor, chariots, fuel-efficient SUVs! And yet-bah! Forced to shut down. Laid off most of our tribe. This war was too quick. Titans lost. No good! No more need for Cyclops weapons."

"Oh, no," My sister sympathized. "I'm sure you made some amazing weapons."

Torque grinned. "Squeaky war hammer!" He picked up a large pole with an accordion-looking box on the end. Once he slammed it against the floor the cement cracked but it sounded like the world's largest rubber ducky getting stomped.

Oh bless him.

"Terrifying," Piper said.

The Cyclops looked pleased. "Not as good as the exploding ax, but this one can be used more than once."

"Can I see it?" Piper asked. Ah, the wonderful world of charmspeak. "If you could just free my hands-"

Torque started to walk towards my sister rather eagerly, but Ma Gasket said, "Stupid! She's tricking you again. Enough talk! Slay the boy first before he dies on his own. I like my meat fresh."

No, not yet!

Leo's fingers flew, connecting as many wires as he could for the remote.

"Hey, wait," My sister said, trying to get their attention. "Hey, can I just ask-"

Then the wires sparked in Leo's hand, causing the Cyclopes to turn in our direction. Torque picked up a truck at threw it at us.

"Move!" I shouted before rolling as the truck steamrolled over the machinery.

I helped Leo to his feet, and he kept his arms around me in a protective manner.

Ma Gasket spotted us. "Torque," she yelled. "You pathetic excuse for a Cyclops, get them!"

My eyes widened.

Torque barreled towards us, as my boyfriend frantically gunned the toggle on his makeshift remote.

Fifty feet. Twenty.

Then, the first robotic arm whirred to life, and a three-ton yellow metal claw slammed into the Cyclops causing him to fall on his face. Before he could get up and recover, the robotic hand grabbed him by one leg and hurled him straight up.

"AHHHHH!" Torque shot up, and I heard a harsh metal _clang_. So whatever happened, he probably got hurt. He never came down. Instead, yellow dust rained to the floor. He disintegrated.

Ma Gasket looked at us in shock. "My son... You... You..."

As if on cue, Sump came in with a case of salsa. "Ma, I got the extra-spicy-"

He never finished his sentence. The second robotic arm whacked Sump in the chest, causing the case of salsa to explode like a pinata. And Sump flew backwards into the third machine. And then he exploded into dust.

Remind me to thank my wonderful boyfriend.

Ma Gasket locked eyes with Leo. She grabbed the nearest crane arm and ripped it off. Literally. "You busted my boys! Only _I_ get to bust my boys!"

Leo pressed another button and the other robotic arms swung into action. At first I thought this was going to work. But no, she had to rip it in half. Then the second one hit her in head, which seemed to make her mad. She grabbed it by the clamps, ripped it free, and swung it like a baseball bat.

We're screwed.

I yelped and Leo pushed me out of the way, then moved out of the way.

An inch. It missed me by an _inch_.

Ma stood about twenty feet from us, with her fest clenched, and teeth bared. Even with her appearance, she looked ridiculous, but with the murderous glare in that one huge red eye, it creeped me out.

"Ant more tricks, demigods?" Ma Gasket demanded.

All I have is _Falcata_, and I don't think it can do much.

"Heck, yeah, I got tricks!" Leo raised the remote control. "Take one more step, and I'll destroy you with fire."

The Cyclops laughed. "Would you? Cyclopes are immune to fire, you idiot. But if you wish to play with flames, let me help."

She scooped up red-hot coals and threw them at us. The good thing, they landed all around his feet.

Leo shot me a look, _Move_.

I nodded and hid behind one of the broken machines.

"You missed," My boyfriend said incredulously. I'm not gonna lie, but that was kinda hot. Sorry, sorry, murderous Cyclops about to attack us and I'm admiring my boyfriend.

Then Ma Gasket grinned and picked up a barrel of kerosene and threw it. The barrel split on the floor in front of him, spilling lighter fluid everywhere.

"No!" My sister screamed, as I closed my eyes.

When I opened them, a firestorm erupted around Lee, and the fire was swirling twenty feet into the air.

Lady boner, right there.

The Cyclops shrieked with delight, but it soon died down to small fiery patches on the floor.

Piper gasped. "Leo?"

Ma Gasket looked astonished. "You live?" Then she took an extra step forward. "What are you?"

"The son of Hephaestus," Leo said. "And I warned you I'd destroy you with fire."

He pointed one finger in the air and shot a bolt of white-hot flames at the chain above Ma's head which held an engine block.

The flames died. Nothing happened. Nada. The Cyclops laughed. "An impressive try, son of Hephaestus. It's been many centuries since I saw a fire user. You'll make a spicy appetizer."

I held my breath.

Then the chain snapped, and the engine block fell. It was silent, but deadly. Heh...

"I don't think so," My boyfriend sing-songed.

Ma Gasket didn't even have time to look up. _Smash!_ All that was left was a pile of dust.

"Not immune to engines, huh?" Leo said. "Boo-yah!"

He fell to his knees, and I ran towards him.

"Lee," I gently patted his face. "You okay?"

I helped him to his feet and I noticed my sister getting down from her chains. We lowered Jason, who was still unconscious, onto the ground. Piper managed to trickle a little bit of nectar into his mouth and he groaned.

"Yeah, he's got a nice thick skull," Leo said, twining our held hands together, grinning. "I think he's gonna be fine."

"Thank god," Piper sighed, then she looked at Leo. "How did you-the fire-have you always...?"

Leo looked down. "Always, I'm a freaking menace. Sorry, I should've told you guys soon but-"

"Sorry?" My sister punched his arm. "That was amazing, Valdez! You saved our lives. What are you sorry about?"

Then she looked at our hands. "Finally get the courage, Valdez?"

He blushed. "Shut up,"

I kissed his check, which made me blush. "Thanks for saving me, Lee."

Leo smirked and pulled me into his chest. "No problem, Gorgeous."

"Aw!" Piper drawled out the _w_.

"They're forming again," Leo said. "Look."

I looked to where he was pointing and sure enough the dust was shifting across the floor.

Piper stepped away from the dust next to her foot. "That's not possible. Annabeth told me and Nat that monsters dissipate when they're killed. They go back to Tartarus and can't return for a long time."

"Well, nobody told the dust that." Leo and I watched as the dust started to form legs and arms.

"Oh, god." I remembered what Boreas had said.

"When monsters no longer stay in Tartarus, and souls are no longer confined to Hades," My sister said.

I continued, "How long do you think we have?"

"I don't know," Lee said. "But we need to get out of here."

"I second that!" I agreed.

* * *

**Cute, fluffiness. Oh how I love you! And how I love my wonderful readers! Hope you liked this chappie. **

**M'kay. Bye!**


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